0 M±/f STEREOTYPE EDITJ^N, 




* O N 

ATONEMENT: 



IN WHICH 



[the library 

THE FINITE NATURE OF SIN IS ARGUED,|| OF CONGRESS 
ITS CAUSE AND CONSEQUENCES AS SUC 
THE NECESSITY AND NATURE OF ATONEM 



SKINGTON 



AND ITS GLORIOUS CONSEQUENCES, 



IN THE 



FINAL RECONCILIATION 



OF ALL MEN 



TO HOLINESS AND HAPPINESS. 



It 



BY HOSEA BALLOU. 
II 



AUTHOR OF {< NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS ON THE P ARABLES," 
" CANDID REVIEW,'- &C. 

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. " — St 'Paul 
1 And there shall be no more death,?'— Si. John, 



FOURTH EDITION. 



BOSTON: 
MARSH, CAPEN AND L'V.ON : i 
1832, X- 



\ 
\ 



Entered, according to act of Congress, in the year 1832, 
By Marsh, Capen & Lyon, 
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 



//// 



\ 



/ 



A* LETTER TO THE READER . 
Christian Reader, 

I know it is frequently the case, when a person takes a 
new work in hand, he first casts his eye . over the title page, 
and if he find no word on it that indicates perverse sentiments; 
and the name or denomination of the author be agreeable, he 
may think of having patience to read it; but, being something 
in a hurry, passes slightly over the preface, supposing it to be 
of little consequence. But what sensations may have struck 
your mind, on reading the tittle of this book, and finding it to 
be the intention of the author to prove the doctrine of univer- 
sal holiness and happiness, through the mediation and power 
of atoning grace, I cannot say; however, I would invite you 
to read, with candor and attention, not only this letter, but 
the whole of the work, and make up your judgement 
afterwards. 

Many circumstances might be mentioned, which, in their 
association, have induced me to write and publish the folio w- 
ing treatise; but I can say, with propriety, that the central 
object was 'hat, in which I always find the most happiness, 
viz. to do vhat I find most necessary, in order to render 
myself mov useful to mankind. 

I have, from my early youth, been much in the habit of 
inquiring into the things of religion, and religous sentiments; 
and have, for a number of years, seen or thought I saw^ 
great inconsistencies, in what has, for a long time, passed for 
orthodoxy in divinity. 

The ideas, that sin is infinite, and that it deserves an in- 
finite punishment; that the law transgressed is infinite, and 
inflicts an infinite penalty; and that the great Jehovah took 
on himself a natural body of flesh and blood, and actually 
suffered death op a cross, to satisfy his infinite justice, and 
thereby save his creatures from endless misery, are ideas 
which appear to me to be unfounded in the nature of reason, 
and unsupported by divine revelation. Such notions have, 
in my opinion, served to darken the human understanding 
and obscure the gospel of eternal life; and have rendered, 
what I esteem as divine revelation, a subject of discredit to 
thousands, who, I believe, would never have condemned the 
scriptures, had it not been for those gross absurdities being 
contended for, and the scriptures forced to bend to such sig- 
nifications. Christian authors and preachers have labored 
much to dissuade those whom they have caused to disbelive the 
Christian religion, from their infidelty. But, in this case, the 
salt has lost its savor, become good for nothing, and is trodden 



4 A LETTER TO THE READER. 

under foot of men, who are too sensible to believe the un- 
reasonable dogmas imposed on the world, either through er- 
ror, or design, and sanctioned by tradition : and too inattentive 
to search the scriptures faithfully and impartially, whereby 
they might have learned that those errors were neither in 
them, nor supported by them. One particular object, there- 
fore in this work, is, if possible, to free the scripture doctrine 
of atonement from those incumbrances which have done it 
so much injury; and open a door at least, for the subject 
to be investigated on reasonable grounds, and by fair argu- 
ment. 

If we admit that our Creator made us reasonable beings, 
we ought, of course, to believe, that all the truth which is 
necessary for our belief, is not only reasonable, but reducible 
to our understandings. 

In order to come at the subject of atonement, so as to have 
light continually shining along the path which I intend to 
occupy, i found it necessary to show my reasons for not ad- 
mitting the doctrine, on the ground on which it is usually 
argued: to do which, I found I must, of necessity, show, that 
the common notion of the infinity of smis unfounded in truth* 
and of course, every consequence deducible from such an er- 
ror, equally unfounded and unsupported. It may seem not 
a little strange, to some of my readers, that I dispute the in- 
finity of the law against which sin is committed; as all unho- 
liness must be, either in union or disunion, with the eternal 
law of holiness and divine purity. But if the reader will take 
a little pains to observe particularly, it will appear plain, that 
no being can stand amenable to a law above his capacity. 
And as the creature is finite, in his earthly character, in which 
character only, he is, or can be a sinner, it is not reasonable 
to say, that he stands amenable to an infinite law. Or if the 
law be infinite, the accountability, in a moral sense, can ex- 
tend no farther than his knowledge of this law extends. But, 
as the reader will find, in this work so much of the divine 
law of perfection, as the creature obtains a knowledge of, 
(which, in comparison to the whole, is no more than a shad- 
ow to a substance) is the law which he violates by his sin. 
And though we may speak of the sin of ignorance, it can 
amount to no more than the production of a virtuous inten- 
tion thwarted by ignorance, or the same principle by which 
the beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, and the fish of the 
sea, gratify their various inclinations and appetites. And I 
do not think my reader will wish to have me prove that such 
sin is not infinite. 

In my argument on the cause, or origin of sin, I thought it 
necessary to hint a little on the general idea of the subject, 
endeavoring to show the want of propriety in what is com- 
monly contended for; and I have sought for the rise of unholy 
temptations in the constitutions of earthly and finite beings. 
I have endeavored, also to trace the causes and consequences 



A LETTER TO THE READER. 



5 



of sin (as sin) so as to determine the finite nature of all which 
belongs to sin as cause and consequence. In any sense, in 
which it can be said that God is the author of any thing 
whatever, in that sense of speaking, it cannot be sin. And in 
any sense, in which any action, or event, can be said to be 
endless, in its consequences, God must be considered the 
author of it. 

In all the statements which I have made of the doctrinal 
ideas of others, I have been careful to state no more than 
what I have read in authors, or heard contended for in 
preaching, or conversation; and if 1 have, in any instance, 
done those ideas any injustice, it was not intended. The 
reason why I have not quoted any author, or spoken of any 
denomination, is, I have not felt it to be my duty nor inclina- 
tion, to write against any name, or denomination, in the 
world; but my object has been, what I pray it ever may be, 
to contend against error, wherever I find it; and to receive 
truth, and support it, let it come from what quarter it may. 
For the sake of ease, however, in writing, I reasoned with 
my opponent, opposer, or objector meaning no one in partic- 
ular, but any one who uses the arguments, and states the ob- 
jections, which I have endeavored to answer. It is very 
probable, that some may think me too ironical, and, in many 
instances, too severe, on what I call error. But I find it very 
difficul t to expose error, so as to be understood by all, without 
carrying, in many instances, my arguments in such a form 
as may not be agreeable to those who believe in what I wish 
to correct. I confess I should have been glad to have writ- 
ten, on all my inquires, so as not to have displeased any, but 
to have pleased all, could I have done it, and accomplished 
my main design; but this I was persuaded would be difficult. 
I have, therefore paid particular attention to nothing but my 
main object; depending on the goodness of my reader to 
pardon what may be disagreeable, in manner or form, as in- 
advertencies. 

What I have written on the subject of the Trinity, is 
mainly to show the reader in what light I view the Mediator, 
that my general ideas of atonement may be the easier under- 
stood. And though I think my objections and arguments, 
against the common idea of three distinct persons in the God- 
head, who are equal in power and glory, to be unanswerable; 
yet it was not my intention to attend to a full refutation ot 
those ideas, as this was to have led too far from our main 
object. 

The opposers of Universalism have generally written and 
contended against the doctrine, under an entire mistaken no- 
tion of it. They have endeavored to show the absurdity of 
believing that men could be received into the kingdom of 
glory and righteousness, in their sins; which no universalist 
ever believed. In this work, I have endeavored to make as 
fair a statement, of what I call Universalism, as I was able; 
1* 



6 



A LETTER TO THE READER. 



and it stands on such ground, that the propriety of it can no 
more be disputed, than the propriety of universal holiness and 
reconciliation to God. Perhaps the reader will say, he has 
read a number of authors on the doctrine of Universalism, 
and finds considerable difference in their systems. That 1 
acknowledge is true; but all agree in the main point, viz. 
that universal holiness and happiness is the great object of the 
gospel plan. And as for the different ways in which individ- 
uals may believe this work will be done, it proves nothing a- 
gainst the main point; but proves, what I wish could be prov- 
ed concerning all other Christian denominations , that they 
have set up no standard of their own, to cause all to bow to, 
or be rejected as heretics. We feel our own imperfections; 
we wish for every one to seek with all his might after wis- 
dom; and let it be found where it may, or by whom it may, 
we humbly wish to have it brought to light, that all may 
eujoy it; but do not feel authorized to condemn an honest in- 
quirer after truth, for what he believes different from a ma- 
jority of us. 

A few sentences, which the reader will find towards the 
close of this work, which have reference to a punishment 
after death, may cause him to desire more of my ideas on 
the subject. 

The doctrine of punishment after death, has, by many able 
writers, been contended for; some of whom have argued such 
punishment to be endless, and others limited. But it appears 
to me that they have taken wrong ground who have endeav- 
ored to support the latter, as well as those who have labored 
to prove the former. They have both put great dependence 
on certain figurative and parabolical expressions, or passages 
of scripture, which they explain, so as to cause them to al- 
lude to such an event. It appears to me, that they have not 
sufficiently attended to the nature of sin, so as to learn its 
punishment to be produced from a law of necessity, and not 
a law of penalty o Had they seen this, they would also have 
seen, that a perpetuity of punishment must be connected with 
an equal continuance of sin, on the same principle that an 
effect is dependent on its cause. Who in the world would 
contend, that a man, who had sinned one year, could expiate 
his guilt, by sinning five more, with greater turpitude of 
heart? State the punishment, say a thousand years, for a 
sinner who dies in unbelief. What is it for? Say for his 
incorrigibleness in this world. Well, does he commit sin 
during these thousand years? Surely, or he could not be 
miserable. Then I ask, if it take a thousand years punish- 
ment in another world, to reward the sinner for, say fifty 
years of sin in this, how long must he be punished, after- 
wards, for the sin he commits during the thousand years? 
The punishment, or sufferings, which we endure, in conse- 
quence of sin, is not a dispensation of any penal law, but of 
the law of necessity, in which law, as long as a cause contin- 



A LETTER TO THE READER. 



7 



ues, it produces its effects. Therefore, to prove a man will 
suffer condemnation for sin, at thirty, forty, or fifty years of 
age, it would be necessary to prove that he would be a sinner 
at that time, or those times. So, in order to prove that a 
man will be miserable, after this mortal life is ended, it must 
first be proved that he will sin in the next state of existence. 

It has been argued, by many, that the doctrine of future 
punishment, or misery, is a necessary doctrine to dissuade 
men from committing sin, which surely surprises me. To 
tell a person who is in love of sin, that if he does not imme- 
diately refrain, he will have to continue in sin for a long time, 
would be true, besure,\ but would be void of force to dissuade 
him from what he is in love with. I believe, that as long as 
men sin, they will be miserable, be that time longer or short- 
er; and that as soon as they cease from sin, they begin to 
experience divine enjoyment. 

The scripture speaks of the times of the restitution of all 
things, but does not inform us their number, or their dura- 
tion. It also speaks of the fullness of times, but gives us no 
date, or duration of them. 

I have not stated so many objections against the doctrine 
which I have labored to prove, as many of my readers may 
wish I had, nor so many as I should have been glad to, was 
it not for swelling the work to more of an expensive size. 
But I have stated, and endeavored to answer the most fre- 
quent objections, and those on which my opposers put the 
most dependence; and I should have taken great satisfaction 
in communicating many more arguments, both from reason 
and scripture, in favor of universal holiness and happiness, 
than I have, was it not for the reason assigned in the other 
case. However, if those objections which I have taken no- 
tice of, are answered to the reader's satisfaction, other 
scriptures, generally used as argument against the salvation 
of all men, will not be hard to be understood, as not unfa- 
vorable to the doctrine. And as for the proofs which I have 
deduced from scripture and reason, I believe them entirely 
conclusive; but if not, more of the same kind would not be. 

The reason I have not particularly explained those para- 
bles of the New Testament which I have had occasion to no- 
tice, in this work, is, my Notes, of which, mention is made 
on the title page of this book, are before the public, and con- 
tain my ideas on most of the parables spoken by Christ. 

A question may be asked by many, which has labored 
much in my mind, respecting the propriety of publishing 
books on divinity, when we profess to believe in the book 
called the Bible, that it contains all which we mean to com- 
municate as truth, in matters of religion; on which ques- 
tion I am determined for myself, that the gospelof Jesus 
Christ would have been better understood, had the bible been 
the only book ever read on the subject. And though I doubt 
not but many authors have done great justice to those sub 



8 



A LETTER TO THE READER. 



jects on which they have written, andthejight of the scrip- 
tures have, by such means, been caused to shine; yet, by oth- 
ers it has been greatly obscured. And had one half the atten- 
tion been paid to the Bible which has been paid to those au- 
thors who have written upon it, it would in my opinion, 
have been incomparably better for Christendom. But, on 
account of errors imbibed, in consequence of erroneous an- 
notations, it may be argued, that it is now necessary to write 
and publish correct sentiments, by the same parity of reason- 
ing as we argue the necessity of those means to restore 
health, which are not necessary to continue it. 

To the short exhortation, with which the believer in Uni- 
versalism will meet, in this work, he ^is humbly invited to 
pay strict attention; as no faith, however true it may be, can 
be of any real service to the believer, unless it be accompanied 
with the spirit and life of that truth in which it is grounded. 
The greater the usefulness of a person, the more lamenta- 
ble his death. The more divinity there is in any faith, the 
greater is the pity it should not be alive. " As the body 
without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead 
also. 55 

My bretheren in the ministry will not think it assuming, 
that I have spoken of the necessity of our paying strict at- 
tention to the stewardship into which God by his grace hath 
put us; as it was not written so much to instruct, as to show 
the bretheren my faith; that they may see the ground on 
which I stand; know the manner in which I contend for the 
faith once delivered to the saints; and feel for me the same 
fellowship which I feel for them. You may regret that my 
ideas were not more correct, in many instances, and think 
the great subject on which I have written, might have ob- 
tained better justice from some more experienced writer; in 
which you have the same ideas with myself. But in this you 
may be satisfied, that I have written as I now think and be- 
lieve, without leaning to the right, or to the left, to please or 
displease. I have been often solicited to write and publish 
my general ideas on the gospel, but have commonly observed 
to my friends, that it might be attended with disagreeable 
consequences, as it is impossible to determine whether the 
ideas which we entertain at the present time are agreeable 
to those which we shall be under the necessity of adopting 
after we have had more experience; and knowing to my 
satisfaction that authors are very liable to feel such an attach- 
ment to sentiments which they have openly avowed to the 
world, that their predjudice frequently obstructs their fur- 
ther acquisitions in the knowledge of the truth; and even in 
cases vf conviction, their own self-importance will keep 
them from acknowledging their mistakes : And having some 
knowledge of my own infirmities, I felt the necessity of pre- 
caution which I have no reason to believe, is, or has been 
injurious. 



A LETTER TO THE READER. 



9 



It has often been said, by the enemies of the doctrine for 
which I have contended, that it would do to live by, but not 
to die by; meaning- that it would not give the mind satisfac- 
tion, when sensible it was about to leave a mortal, for an 
immortal state. As to the truth of the assertion, I cannot 
positively say, that moment has not yet been experienced by 
me ; and as those who make the remark have never believed 
the doctrine, I cannot see how they should know any better 
than I do. Thus much I can say, I believe I have seen, and 
often heard of persons rejoicing in the doctrine, in the last 
hours of their lives ; but I do not build my faith on such grounds. 
The sorrows, or the joys of persons, in their last moments, 
prove nothing to me of the truth of their general belief. A Jew 
who despises the name of Christ, from the force of his edu- 
cation, may be filled with comfortable hopes, in his last mo- 
ments, from the force of the same education. I have no 
doubt but a person may believe or pretend to believe, in the 
doctrine of universal salvation,when he knows of no solid 
reason for his belief, but has rather rested the matter on the 
judgment of those in whom he has placed more confidence 
than he has in reality, on the Saviour of the world; and I 
think it very possible, that such Universalists may have 
strange and unexpected fears, when the near approach of 
death, or any other circumstance, should cause them to 
think more seriously, on so weighty a subject. 

What my feelings might be, concerning the doctrine 
which I believe, was I called to contemplate on a death 
bed, I am as unable to say, as I am what I may think of it a 
year hence, should I live and be in health. But I am satisfi- 
ed, beyond a doubt, that if I live a year longer, and then find 
cause to give up my present belief, that I shall not feel a con- 
sciousness of having professed what I did not sincerely be- 
lieve; and was I called to leave the world and my writings 
in it, and at the last hour of my life should find I had erred, 
yet I am satisfied, that I should possess the approbation of a 
good conscience in all I have written. 

Therefore, though sensible of my imperfections, yet en- 
joying great consolation in believing the doctrine for which 
I have argued, in the following work, and in the enjoyment of 
a good conscience, I submit the following pages to a gener- 
ous and candid public, praying for the blessing of the Go.i 
whom I serve, on the feeble endeavors of the most unworthy 
whom he hath called as a servant of all men. 



THE AUTHOR. 



THE AUTHOR'S PREFACE TO THE FIFTH EDITION 



As this edition of the treatise on atonement, in several re 
spects, varies from former editions, the author feels that he 
owes it to the public to offer some reason for such varia- 
tions. 

It has pleased God to continue his life, until this work has 
passed through four editions, with all the imperfections 
which it contained when first published, nearly thirty years 
ago. For a number of years he has seen reasons to doubt 
the correctness of some of the opinions which he entertained 
at the time he wrote the work; and also the propriety of the 
use he then made of certain passages of scripture. In his 
preface to the first edition, he says; I have had, for some- 
time, an intention to write a treatise on this subject, but 
thought of deferring it until more experience might enable me 
to perform it better, and leisure give me opportunity to be 
more particular. But the consideration of the uncertainty 
of life was one great stimulous to my undertaking it at this 
time, added to a possibility of living to be informed with what 
success it meets in the world, and of having an opportunity 
to correct whatever I might, in my future studies, find incor- 
rect, were not the smallest causes of my undertaking it. 3 

Now as he has lived to know that the denomination of 
christians, to which he belongs, has given to this humble work 
a much more favorable reception than he had any reason to 
anticipate, and bestowed on it an attention which far exceeds 
his most flattering hopes, and as he has, as he thinks, im- 
proved in his understanding, in certain particulars ; so as to 
feel satisfied that the work needed correction, he felt bound, 
in duty to himself and the public, to make such corrections 
as his present views required. 

But be it known, and duly considered, that in no particular 
has the author's views, undergone any change unfavorable 
to the main doctrine, to the support of which the treatise 
was devoted. 

The main points, in relation to which his views now differ 
from those he entertained when he first wrote the following 
work, relate to the pre-existence of Christ, of man's exist- 
ence before his corporeal organization; and the application 
of some passages of scripture solely to the purifying opera- 
tions of divine truth in man's understanding which passages 
he now believes embraced, in their true sense, all the tem- 
poral judgments with which a most perverse and wicked 
generation was visited. 

Although he as fully believed in the dependence of Christ 
on his God and Father, as he now does, he entertained the 
opinion that he had a sentinent existence before he was mani- 
fested in flesh; and he then thought that certain passages of 
2 



12 



author's preface. 



scripture evidently supported that opinion. These passag- 
es, though they seem to favor such a sentiment, do not ap- 
pear altogether sufficient, fully to warrant the belief of it. 
Could the opinion now be fully supported that Christ existed 
in a sentinent state before he was manifested in the flesh, 
it would not be difficult to yield to a belief that Adam also 
had an existence before he was formed of the dust of the 
ground. However these things are, in fact, they now appear 
to the author as points of mere speculation, much too obscure 
to be laid down as matters of faith. 

It is of importance here to remark, that the moral relation 
which the treatise originally represented man to hold to the 
Creator, from which relation momentous deductions were 
drawn, is still believed; and all those deductions are retained. 

To the foregoing it may be proper to add, that the doctrine 
of a future disciplinary state, and the application of certain 
passages of scripture to that state of suffering which were 
left in suspense, undecided, in the treatise originally, were so 
left on account of the author's mind being then undecided in 
relation to these subjects. He was, however, as well con- 
vinced then as now, that the doctrine of a future retribu- 
tion could be supported on no other hypothesis than that 
of the continuance of sin in a future state; but he was not 
then so fully satisfied, that all which the scriptures say about 
sin, and the punishment of it, relates solely to this mortal 
state as he now is. 

The author entertains no doubt that many will regret, 
that, as an opportunity has offered, the treatise should not 
be more improved as to its style. As an apology for this de- 
fect, he offers two suggestions: first. He could not consent 
so entirely to alter the work as to endanger the loss of what 
has probably given its arguments and easy access to the 
understanding of common readers. And second. A con- 
sciousness that any effort or labor in his power to make 
or bestow, would, after all, leave many offences to the deli- 
cate nice reader. 

The author is not willing to neglect this opportunity to 
tender his grateful acknowledgements to his numerous 
friends who have so indulgently regarded his different pub- 
lications, and so extensively patronised his labors. That 
a growth in the knowledge of divine truth, and treasures 
laid up where neither moth nor rust can corrupt, may be 
their recompense, is the sincere prayer of their devoted ser- 
vant The Author. 



TREATISE 



ON 

ATONEMENT. 



In this treatise on atonement, I shall confine myself 
to three general inquiries. 1st. Of Sin. 2d. Of Atone- 
ment for Sin. 3d. Of the Consequences of Atonement 
to Mankind. These particulars may be represented by 
a disorder; the remedy for the disorder, and the health 
enjoyed in consequence of a cure. 

And 1st. Of sin, which for the sake of ease, I sub- 
divided as follows. 1. Its nature. 2. Its cause. And 
3. Its effects. 

And first of the nature of sin. Sin is the violation 
of a law which exists in the mind, which law is the im- 
perfect knowledge men have of moral good. This law 
is transgressed, whenever, by the influence of tempta- 
tion, a good understanding yields to a contrary choice. 
Where a law exists, it presupposes a legislature whose 
intention, in legislation must be thwarted, in order for 
the law to take cognizance of sin. This legislature, 
in all moral accountable beings, is a capacity to under- 
stand, connected with the causes and means of know- 
ledge, which standing or existing, on finite and limited 
principles will justify my supposition, that sin, in 
its nature ought to be considered finite and limited, 
rather than infinite and unlimited, as has by many 
been supposed. 



16 



ON ATONEMENT. 



By offering my reasons against the infinity of sin, I 
shall open to an easy method of showing it to be finite. 
The supposition that sin is infinite, is supported, or 
rather pretended to be supported, on the consideration 
of its being committed against an infinite law, which is 
produced by an infinite legislature, who is God him- 
self. I have before observed, and I think justly, that 
the intention of a legislature, in legislation, must be 
thwarted, in order for the law, to take cognizance of 
sin. Now if God, in a direct sense of speaking, be the 
legislator of the law which is thwarted by transgression, 
in the same direct sense of speaking, his intentions in 
legislation are thwarted. With eyes open, the reader 
cannot but see, that if sin be infinite because it is com- 
mitted against an infinite law, whose author is God, 
the design of Deity must be abortive; to suppose 
which, brings a cloud of darkness over the mind, as 
intense as the supposition is erroneous. It cannot with 
any propriety be supposed, that any rational being can 
have an intention contrary to the knowledge which he 
possesses. Was a resolve brought into the State Leg- 
islature to be passed into an act, it would be very un- 
likely to succeed, providing the legislature knew that 
the intention of the act would utterly fail. It is pos- 
sible, and very frequently the case, that imperfect be- 
ings desire contrary to their knowledge ; but this, in 
every instance is proof and often the cause of their 
misery. In such cases, misery rises to an exact pro- 
portion to the strength of desire. Now to reason just- 
ly, we must conclude, that if God possesses infinite 
wisdom, he could never intend any thing to take place, 
or be, that will not take place, or be ; nor that which 
is, or will be, not to be, at the time when it is. And 
it must be considered erroneous to suppose that the 



ON ATONEMENT. 



17 



Allwise ever desired any thing to take place, which 
by his prescience, he knew would not ; as such a 
supposition must in effect, suppose a degree of misery 
in the Eternal Mind equal to the strength of his fruitless 
desire ! Were this the case, all the misery to which 
mortals are subject, bears not the thousandth part of 
the proportion to the miseries of the Divine Being, as 
the smallest imaginable atom does to the weight of the 
ponderous globe ; providing, at the same time, the idea 
of infinity is attached to Deity! Again, if we admit 
of a disappointment to the Supreme Being, even in the 
smallest matter, it follows, that we have no satisfacto- 
ry evidence whereby to prove that any thing, at pre- 
sent, in the whole universe, is as He intended. All 
the harmonies of nature, which to the eye of wonder- 
ing man, are so convincing of the existence of that 
power, wisdom and goodness which he adores, may 
have continued their laws in active force much longer 
than God intended ; brought into existence millions of 
beings more than were contemplated in creation ; and 
by this time become a perfect nuisance to the general 
plan of the Almighty. The admission of the error re- 
futed, would sink the mind to the nether parts of moral 
depravity, where darkness reigns with all its horrors. 

The above arguments are introduced to show the 
absurdity of admitting a violation of the intention of 
the Supreme Legislator. 

I now turn on the other side, and admit as a fact, 
what I have sufficiently refuted, viz. that the inten- 
tions of God as a Supreme Legislator are violated by 
the sin of finite beings ; but must beg leave to inform the 
reader that the proposition will by no means afford the 
intended consequences ; but yields me an argument in 

favor of the finite nature of sin, which I do not want, 

2 # 



18 TREATISE 

and of which I shall make no other use than to explode 
the proposition itself. If any intention of Deity were 
ever thwarted, it proves, without evasion, that he is 
not infinite ; if so, his will, or intention, cannot be in- 
finite; and, therefore, the consequences intended by 
the proposition are forever lost, as they exist only upon 
the supposition of his being infinite. If it be argued, 
that the intentions of Deity, as a legislator, are vio- 
lated, not strictly in an infinite sense, but in some sub- 
ordinate degree, it is giving up the ground contended 
for, to all intents ; for if the intention violated, be not 
infinite, the sin of violating it, cannot be infinite. 

Again, if sin be infinite and unlimited, it cannot be 
superseded by any principle or being in the universe ; 
for goodness cannot be more than infinite, neither is 
there a degree for Deity to occupy above it. And it 
may be further argued, that the admission of the error 
refuted, would be a denial of any Supreme Being in 
the universe ; for, as Deity does not supersede sin, he 
cannot be superior to that which is equal to himself 

Again, I further inquire, can that be considered as 
an infinite evil, which is limited in its consequences ? 
The answer must be in the negative. If sin be an 
infinite evil, and infinite in its consequences as an evil, 
not only all created beings must suffer endlessly by it, 
but God himself can never cease to experience the 
torment-giving power of that which he is unable to 
avoid ; I say more, if sin be infinite and unlimited, for 
it must be unlimited, if it be infinite, it follows that 
there is no such principle in the universe, as any one 
property which we are wont to attribute to the Almigh- 
ty ; for, if once we admit a principle of divine justice 
to have an existence, it is granted that sin is bounded 
by it, and therefore cannot be infinite ; and it is a fact 



ON ATONEMENT, 



19 



that sin can nowhere exist, only where it can be com- 
pared with justice. Again, it ought not to be suppos- 
ed, that the intentions of Deity were ever violated, it 
we admit, at the same time, that he had power to 
avoid such violation. And who, in their senses, will 
say, that that which is unavoidable by God, is avoida- 
ble by man ? 

Enough, undoubtedly, is said, to show the egre- 
gious mistake of supposing sin to be infinite; and 
more need not be written on the subject were it not 
by some contended, that Job xxii. 5, is in full proof of 
the infinity of sin. "Is not thy wickedness great? 
and thine iniquities infinite In answer to this pas- 
sage, I need only turn the reader to chap. xlii. 7. 
" And it was so, that after the Lord had spoken these 
words unto Job, the Lord said unto Eliphaz the Tima- 
nite, my wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy 
two friends, for ye have not spoken of me the thing 
that is right, as my servant Job hath." Observe, kind 
reader, the words which are brought to prove the infin- 
ity of sin, are neither the words of God, nor of one 
whom he approved; but they are the words of that 
Timanite against whom God's anger was kindled, for 
not speaking the thing that was right. 

Once more, and I close this part of my query :- — 
If sin be infinite in its nature, there can be no one sin 
greater than another. The smallest offence against 
the good of society, is equal to blasphemy against the 
Holy Ghost. If what we call a small crime, be not 
infinite, the greatest cannot be, providing there is any 
proportion between the great and the small Are not 
the words of Christ, Matt. xii. 31, where he speaks of 
sins and blasphemies that should be forgiven unto 
men, and of blasphemies that should not be for- 



TREATISE 



given men, a sufficient evidence that some sins are 
more heinous than others ? Again, 1 Epistle of John, 
v. 16, where some sins are said to be not unto death, 
and some unto death, &c. 

Now, admitting the matter proved, that sin is not 
infinite, it follows, of course, that it is proved to be fi- 
nite. However we will now attend to the direct evi- 
dences of the finite nature of sin. 

The law which takes cognizance of sin is not infi- 
nite, not in the sense in which it is violated, it being 
produced by the legislature which I have before no- 
ticed, viz. a capacity to understand, connected with 
the causes and means of knowledge. In order for a 
law to be infinite, the legislature must be so; but 
man's ability to understand is finite and all the means 
which are in his power for the acquisition of know- 
ledge are finite ; all his knowledge is circumscribed, 
and the law produced by such causes must be like 
them, not infinite but finite. An infinite law would 
be far above the capacity of a finite being, and it would 
be unreasonable to suppose man amenable to a law 
above his capacity. All our knowledge of good and 
evil is obtained by comparison. We call an action 
evil by comparing it with one which we call good. 
Were it in our power to embrace all the consequen- 
ces that are connected with our actions in our in- 
tentions, our meanings would seldom be what they 
now are. Had it been so with the brethren of Jo- 
seph ? when they sold him to the Ishmaelites, that they 
then knew all the consequences which would attend 
the event, they would not have meant it, as they did, 
for evil, but seeing with perfectly unbeclouded eyes 
their own salvation, and that of the whole family of 
promise, they would have meant it for good, as did 



ON ATONEMENT. 



21 



the Almighty who superintended the affair. Now the 
act of selling Joseph was sin, in the meaning of those 
who sold him; but it was finite, considered as sin, 
for it was bounded by the narrowness of their un- 
derstandings, limited by their ignorance, and circum- 
scribed by the wisdom and goodness of him who 
meant it for good. If this sin had been infinite, noth- 
ing we can justly call good, could have been the con- 
sequence ; but whoever read the event without see- 
ing that the best of consequences were connected with 
it? 

The promised seed, in whom all the families of the 
earth are to be blessed, according to the word of 
promise to Abraham, was to descend from that family 
which was preserved through seven years of famine, 
as a consequence of the good intended in that event. 
And who but God can comprehend the infinite good 
contained in all the glorious plan of mediatorial grace? 
We then see, that what in a limited sense, we 
may justly call sin, or evil, in an unlimited sense, is 
justly called good. We say of the top of yonder 
mountain, it is exceedingly high; and of yonder val- 
ley, it is low; and this we justly say, by comparing 
one with the other, in respect to the centre of our 
earth. But the moment we extend our thoughts to 
contemplate the millions of worlds in unbounded 
space, and take the whole in one grand system, the 
idea of high and low is lost. So is sin finished, when, 
by divine grace, our understandings are enlightened, 
and we hear our spiritual Joseph say, "Grieve not 
yourselves, ye meant it unto evil, but God meant it 
unto good.' It will be granted, on all sides, that no ac- 
tion unconnected with design ought to be considered 
gin ; it is then an evil intention that constitutes an evil 



22 



TREATISE 



action. For instance, a man exerting himself to the 
utmost of his abilities to save the life of his neighbor, 
accidentally takes his life, the consequence is not the 
guilt of murder, but heart-aching grief for the loss of his 
friend. Again, a man exerting himself with all his 
ingenuity and strength to take the life of his neigh- 
bor, misses his intention and saves his life from im- 
mediate danger; the consequence is not the appro- 
bation of a good conscience for having saved the life 
of his neighbor, but condemnation for having de- 
signed his death, and perhaps mortification in his 
disappointment. By these instances, the reader may 
see, that no act can be determined to be morally 
good, or evil, by the consequences which follow, but 
only by the disposition, or intention, which the actor 
possesses when the act is done. Then, in order for 
the sin to be infinite, the intention of the transgressor 
must be infinite, embracing all the consequences that 
can ever arise from what he does ; but this is never 
the case with finite beings. We never know all the 
effects or consequences, that will be produced from 
the smallest of those acts which we do in time. It is 
the immediate consequences which we have in our 
power to calculate upon, and in them we are often 
deceived. Our acts as moral accountables, are all 
limited to the narrow circle of our understanding ; 
therefore our goodness is limited, being of the finite 
nature of our knowledge, and our sin is in the same 
finite and limited circle. It may be argued very 
justly, that as no finite cause can produce an infinite 
effect, no finite creature can commit an infinite sin ; 
and as every effect must stand in relation to its cause, 
so man being finite, cannot be the cause of an 
evil which does not stand in relation to man the finite 



ON ATONEMENT. 



23 



cause. Should the reader suppose, that my admit- 
ting the act of selling Joseph was attended with un- 
limited consequences, in opposition to my sentiment 
wherein I limit all actions which originate in finite 
causes ; I reply, as the act of selling Joseph re- 
spected the purpose of Deity, and the plan of 
grace, those who sold him do not stand as even the 
shadow of a cause, but only as instruments, by which 
God effected his own divine and gracious purpose- 
Perhaps the reader by this time, is ready to say, ac- 
cording to this reasoning, there can be no such things 
as real evil in the universe. If, by real evil, be meant 
something that ought not to be, in respect to all the 
consequences which attend it, I cannot admit of its 
existence; for I cannot conceive of any productive 
cause whatever, that can be, strictly speaking, limited 
in its consequences. For instance, the first transgres- 
sion of man, no one can suppose, has ceased in its 
consequences ; for, from that cause, the knowledge of 
good and evil exists in moral beings, and when the 
effects of that knowledge will cease, I cannot imagine. 
If it be objected, that to call that a sin which produces 
an infinite continuance of good effects, must be ab- 
surd ; I say, in reply, the objection comes too late ; 
for it is already proved, that the consequences of an 
act do not determine whether the act be good or 
evil. t 
I have, in the foregoing queries, spoken of that kind 
of sin which is productive of remorse ; however, we 
read, besure, of the sin of ignorance, see Num. xv. 
27, &c; but this I conceive to be more of a legal 
than of a moral nature, and it is sometimes called er- 
ror; it is in a thousand instances productive of sorrow 
and disappointment, but never of guilt. If we consid- 



24 



TREATISE 



er the Jews under the law, or the Gentiles, who, the 
apostle says, were a law unto themselves, we shall 
find them exposed to guilt, on the same principles. 
Therefore, moral transgression must vary, as the know- 
ledge and understanding of men vary, in various cir- 
cumstances. 

If it be thought by the reader, that I have passed 
over the spirit of the law, which is love to God in a 
superlative degree, and an esteem for our neighbors 
equal to that which we have for ourselves ; I answer, 
I have not altogether passed by it. This law of divine 
love is that infinite law of perfection, which is higher 
than our capacities extend, in a finite state. The law 
given to Israel, literally speaking, was only a shadow 
of the spirit of love ; and all our knowledge of moral 
holiness is but a faint resemblance of that sublime rec- 
titude from which the most upright of the sons of men 
are at a great distance. 

Having said so much on the nature of sin as to 
make the subject plain to the reader's understanding, 
I will now pass to an inquiry into its catise, or origin. 

The origin of sin has, among christians in general 
been very easily accounted for ; but in a way, I must 
confess, that never gave me any satisfaction, since I 
came to think for myself on subjects of this nature. A 
short chimerical story of the bard, Milton, has given 
perfect satisfaction to millions, respecting the introduc- 
tion of moral evil into the moral system which we oc- 
cupy. The substance of the account is, sometime 
before the creation of man, the Almighty created mul- 
titudes of spiritual beings, called angels. Some ©f 
these creatures of God were much higher in dignity 
and authority than others, but all perfectly destitute of 
sin, or moral turpitude. One dignified above all the 



ON ATONEMENT, 



25 



rest, stood Prime Minister of the Almighty, clothed 
with the highest missive power, and clad with gar- 
ments of primeval light ; obsequious to nothing but 
the high behest of his Creator, he discharged the func 
tions of his office with a promptitude and dignity, suit- 
ed to the eminency of his station, and to the admira- 
tion of celestial millions. But when it pleased Jeho- 
vah to reveal the brightness of his glory and the image 
of the Godhead in humanity, he gave forth the com- 
mand, see Psalm xcvii. 7. "Worship him, all ye 
Gods." And Heb. i. 6. " And again, when he 
bringeth the first begotten into the world, he saith, and 
let all the angels of God worship him." Lucifer, Son 
of the Morning, (as Christians have called him) sur- 
prised at the idea of worshipping any being but God 
himself, looked on the Son with ineffable disdain, and 
in a moment grew indignant, rebelled against God, 
challenged supremacy with the Almighty, and cast his 
eye to the sides of the north as a suitable place to es- 
tablish his empire. Legions of spirits followed this 
chief in rebellion, and formed a dangerous party, in 
the kingdom of the Almighty. The Son of God was 
invested with full power as Generalissimo of Heaven, 
to command the remaining forces, against the common 
enemy. And in short, after many grievious battles be- 
tween armies of contending spirits, where life could 
not, in the least, be exposed, Lucifer and his party 
were driven out of Heaven, leaving it in peace, though 
in a great measure, depopulated ! 

God having created the earth, and placed the first 
man and woman in a most happy situation of inno- 
cence ard moral purity, without the smallest appetite 
for sin, or propensity to evil, the arch Apostate envi- 
ously looked from his fiery prison, to which he was 
3 



26 



TREATISE 



consigned by the command of the Almighty, and be- 
holding man placed in so happy a situation, and in a 
capacity to increase to infinite multitudes, by which 
the kingdom of Heaven would be enlarged, was deter- 
mined to crop this tree in the bud. — He therefore, 
turns into a serpent, goes to the woman and beguiles 
her, gets her to eat of a fruit which God had forbidden, 
by which means he introduced sin into our system. 

I have not been particular in this sketch, but it con- 
tains the essence of the common idea. I shall now 
put it under examination, looking diligently for the 
propriety of accounting for the origin of moral evil in 
this way. 

And first, of this memorable rebellion in heaven ! 
It seems that this rebel angel was always obedient to 
the commands of his Maker, until the hour of his fall ; 
that there was not the least spot of pollution in him, 
until he felt the emotions of pride, which lifted him 
above submission to the Son of God. This being the 
case, I ask, was this angel ignorant of the real charac- 
ter of the Son, whom he was commanded to worship ? 
If he were not, but knew it to be no other than the 
true Eternal, his Creator, manifested in a nature which 
Jehovah created ; if he loved his Maker as he ought to 
do, which none will pretend to dispute ; he would 
have worshiped him with due reverence, the moment 
he made the discovery and heard the command : This 
no person in his senses will dispute. If he did not 
know the real character whom he was commanded to 
worship, had he complied, he would have worship- 
ped, he knew not what. And nothing can be more 
absurd, than to suppose that infinite wisdom would 
command his creatures to worship ignorantly. I 
ask, further, could purity produce impurity ; or moral 



ON ATONEMENT. 



27 



holiness, unholiness ? All answer, no. Was not the 
angel holy in every faculty ? Was not the command, 
for him to worship the Son, holy and just ? All an- 
swer, yes. Then from such causes, how was sin pro- 
duced ? The reader will easily see, the question can- 
not be answered. Now, be so kind as to turn to the 
scripture, to which I have referred on this subject, and 
see if we have any authority for saying, that either 
gods or angels refused to worship, when commanded. 
' i Again, when he bringeth in the first begotten into 
the world, he saith, let all the angels of God worship 
him." That this first begotten is Christ, no doubt will 
be entertained. But when was he brought into the 
world ? before or since the first transgression of man ? 
Since, most certainly. Then, supposing millions of 
angels had sinned at that time, it could have had no 
consequence productive of man's transgression, as a 
cause cannot be posterior to its effects. Therefore, to 
suppose, that those angels who never sinned until long 
after man became a transgressor, were the instigators 
of what is called the fall, discovers a want of calcula- 
tion. And further, what authority have we for believ- 
ing that the command was disobeyed ? We find noth- 
ing connected with either passage, viz. that in Psalms 
or that in Hebrews, which intimates a refusal among the 
gods or angels. And I see no need of supposing, that 
by gods, in one text, or by angels in the other, any 
other beings are intended than men. In respect to the 
command for all the gods to worship him, I observe, 
"they were called gods to whom the word of God 
came, and the scriptures cannot be broken." And 
the command, for all the angels of God to worship, 
stands on this proper ground ; by angels, are meant 
messengers, who are employed by God, for the infor- 



28 TREATISE 

mation of their fellow men ; — but as all those messen- 
gers, or ministers, were inferior to the f< Messenger of 
the covenant," whom the Lord promised to send unto 
Jerusalem, it was suitable to show his superiority, by 
giving such a token, in the scriptures, as commanding 
all the angels to worship him. 

There is another passage in the xivth of Isaiah, 12, 
&c. " How art thou fallen from Heaven, O Lucifer, 
Son of the morning ! how art thou cut down to the 
ground, which didst weaken the nations ! for thou 
hast said in thine heart, I will ascend unto heaven ; I 
will exalt my throne above the stars of God ; I will sit 
also upon the mount of the congregation in ^the sides 
of the north, &e. 

" Here/ 5 I have been told, " we have a particular 
account of the sin which Satan committed in Heav- 
en." But as there is nothing in this passage, or its 
connexions, that has reference to any other creature or 
being, as Lucifer, Son of the Morning, than the King 
of Babylon, I shall say but little upon it. Observe, the 
question is asked, How art thou fallen from heaven, 
O Lucifer, Son of the Morning? How art thou 
cut down to the ground, who didst weaken the na- 
tions ? This Lucifer weakened the nations before he 
fell, but was unable to weaken them afterwards. He 
said in his heart, he would ascend unto Heaven. 
Was this the sin of Satan, as is generally supposed ? 
Was he not already in Heaven ? How then could he 
say in his heart, I will ascend unto Heaven ? I will 
not trouble the reader with any thing so vague as the 
vulgar application of this scripture, only enough to 
show that it had no such meaning. The King of 
Babylon is pointed out, in this prophecy, as exalting 
his throne above the stars of God, which, in a figura- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



29 



tive sense, undoubtedly meant his exalting himself by 
the reduction of the Jews, who are figuratively called 
the stars of God. 

Again, this angel of light must have been very ig- 
norant of the power and goodness of the Almighty, in 
order to have possessed a thought, that to rebel against 
him could be of any possible advantage, or that he 
could have carried and maintained a contest with 
him. If he were as ignorant as all this, the inhabi 
tants of Heaven must have been extremely uncul- 
tivated, in that age of eternity, and no great orna- 
ment to a place so much famed for glory and gran- 
deur. If Heaven, which is said to be God's throne, 
be, or ever were inhabited by defectible beings the 
place itself must be a defectible place ; and why the 
Almighty should take up his special abode in a defec- 
table place, surrounded by defectible beings I cannot 
imagine. But I pass on — 

After Satan was turned out of Heaven, he saw 
no possible way to injure his adversary, only by con- 
taminating his creatures, which he had just made, 
and placed in the happy situation before described. 
Here observe, the matter appears strange. Did 
God not know the evil disposition of Satan ? Had he 
forgotten the awful difficulty but just settled ? Or 
would he leave an innocent lamb to the ferocity of a 
bear robbed of her whelps ? God had driven Satan 
from heaven, from his own presence, but left him at 
loose ends to prey on his tender offspring, whom he 
had just left in a defenceless situation, on this ball of 
earth. What would appear more unnatural and 
shocking, than for a father to chase his enemy out at 
his door, but leave him to slay his defenceless chil- 
dren in the street ? I shall, after what I have observ- 
3* 



30 



TREATISE 



ed, beg liberty to say, I am so far from believing any 
such story respecting the cause of sin, that I have not 
even the shadow of evidence, from scripture or rea- 
son, to support the sentiment. But I have been told, 
that man, standing in a state of sinless purity, could 
not have fallen from that rectitude, unless there had 
been some sinful being to have tempted him. Admit- 
ting there is any force in this observation, it stands as 
directly against the fall of Satan, without a sinful 
temptation, as it does against man's transgression^ 
without a tempter. Was man more pure, before he 
sinned, than that holy angel in Heaven ? If not how 
could that angel sin, without a temptation, easier 
than man, who was made in a lower grade ? 

But supposing we should admit that God command- 
ed an angel to worship his Son Jesus, and the angel 
refused, and call that the first sin ever committed, it 
would not determine its origin or cause. A cause, 
or origin must exist, before an effect, or production. 
So, after all our journeying to heaven after a sinning 
angel, and after pursuing him to hell, and from hell to 
the earth, we have not yet answered the question, 
viz. What is the origin of sin ? We have only 
shown, that the way in which this question, has been 
generally solved, is without foundation. 

Having stated what I have been told was the origin 
of sin, and given my reasons why I do not be- 
lieve it, I now come to give my own ideas of the 
matter. 

Scripture, with the assistance of that reason, with- 
out which, the scriptures would be of no more serv- 
ice to us than they are to the brute creation, I shall 
take for my guide, on the question before me. Al- 
mighty God is a being of infinite perfection ; this the 



ON ATONEMENT. 



31 



scriptures will support, and reason declare : He was 
the author of our existence, being the creator of the 
first man and woman, the occasion of their being 
formed of the dust of the ground, and the director of 
that providence by which we are all introduced by 
ordinary generation. Our maker must have had a de- 
sign in the works of his hands ; this the scriptures 
argue, and reason says. The whole of God's design 
must be carried into effect, and nothing more, ad- 
mitting him to be an infinite being. 

It may assist us in arriving at a satisfactory solution 
of our subject, to consider, in the first place, the origin 
of natural evil. This is unquestionably the necessary 
result of the physical organization and constitution of 
animal nature. In the elements of which our bodies 
are composed, and in their combination in our con- 
stitution, we evidently discover ample provisions for 
the production of all manner of disorders to which 
they are incident, and even of mortality itself. A 
careful examination of our natural senses, as medi- 
ums of pleasure and pain, and health and sickness, 
will very naturally lead to a consideration of these 
same senses as being the origin, as far as we can see, 
of our thoughts and volitions. With these senses 
are necessarily connected all the various passions 
which we possess and which are ever in accord- 
ance with the ideas or thoughts by them created 
From the everchanging combinations and various evo- 
lutions of these our senses, thoughts, ideas, appetites, 
and passions are found to originate all that variety of 
moral character which is found in man. 

It has long been the opinion of christian divines 
that natural evil owes its origin to what is denomi- 
nated moral evil or sin, but however respectable this 



32 



TREATISE 



sentiment may be considered on account of the re- 
spectability of its advocates, we feel fully convinced 
that the very reverse of the opinion is true. The 
doctrine which we feel authorised to reverse contends 
that natural evil is a judicial infliction on man for his 
sin, and therefore is the effect of moral evil ; but the 
ground we shall take is that natural evil owes its ori- 
gin to the original constitution of our animal nature, 
and that moral evil or sin owes its origin to natural 
evil 

In order to clearly understand the truth of the posi- 
tion here taken, it is necessary only to notice, with 
due caution, the origin of our volitions. This, in all 
cases, is want. If man wanted nothing he would do 
nothing, nor could he desire to do any thing. Now 
want unsatisfied is an evil ; and unsatisfied want is 
the first movement to action or volition. The motives 
which invite to action, owe their strength to the nature 
and strength of desire which want creates, and the 
moral character of the action depends on the char- 
acter of the motive. 

Thus man, as a partaker of flesh and blood, 6 was 
made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of 
him who subjected the same in hope.' Rom. viii. 20. 
This hope, which is that sure and steadfast anchor, 
which enters into that within the veil, and expatiates 
in a life to come, is the title our Creator has given us, 
as heirs of that immortal and eternal life which are 
brought to light through the gospel. But from our 
natural constitution, composed of our bodily ele- 
ments, we are led to act in obedience to carnal appe- 
tites, which justifies the conclusion that sin is the work 
of the flesh, as expressed by St. Paul Gal. v. 19-21. 
* Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are 



ON ATONEMENT. 



33 



these : adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lascivious- 
ness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulation, 
wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, 
drunkenness, revelings, and such like.' 1 Cor. iii. 3. 
For ye are yet carnal : for whereas there is among you 
envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal 
and walk as men ? ' 

If man had been wholly constituted of flesh and 
blood, both body and mind, so that he was no more 
susceptible of moral principles than the beast creation 
appear to be, then would he never have been capable 
of committing sin, or of enduring moral evil, any 
more than do the lower animals around us. We 
might have had the same natural appetites, desires, 
and passions which we now have, and might have 
strove, like all other creatures to gratify them, and 
might have devoured one another, all without com- 
mitting sin, or feeling guilt. But we find in man 
what we may call a law of moral, or spiritual life, of 
which St. Paul speaks in his epistle to the Romans^ 
where he is quite particular in setting forth the contra- 
ry workings of the law of the flesh and the law of the 
spirit of life. Ch. vii. 19, 23. 'For the good that I 
would I do not ; but the evil which I would not that I 
do. Now, if I do that I would not, it is no more I 
that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a 
law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with 
me. For I delight in the law of God after the in- 
ward man. But I see another law in my members 
warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me 
into captivity to the law of sin which is in my mem- 
bers.' Ch. viii. 1,2,' There is, therefore, now no 
condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus, who 
walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. For the 



34 



TREATISE 



law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me 
free from the law of sin and death.' 

These conflicting laws of flesh and spirit have al- 
ways existed in man from his first formation, and so 
long as they both continue to exert their powers in 
opposition to each other, so long will sin remain and 
continue to produce condemnation. 

This law of the spirit of life is the spirit of Christ, 
or the second Adam, of which we read 1. Cor. xv. 
45, • The first man Adam was made a living soul, the 
last Adam was made a quickening spirit.' This we 
may say is that image of God in which man was crea- 
ted, as Christ is said to be the 6 brightness of God's 
glory, and the express image of his person.' Heb. 
i, 3. 

By thus accounting for the origin of sin we endeavor 
to set forth what we believe is the sense of the scrip- 
ture representation of the subject. James says, chap. i. 
14,. 15, 'But every man is tempted when he is drawn 
away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust 
hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin ; and sin, when it 
is finished, bringeth forth death.' 

In the forepart of Genesis the origin of sin is figu- 
ratively represented. There we are informed that man 
was placed in a garden of delights, to keep it and to 
dress it. The tree of life was in it, and the tree of 
the knowledge of good and evil; he was bid welcome 
to the tree of life, but was forbidden the other. A 
subtle serpent comes to the woman, and tempts her 
with the forbidden fruit ; she eats, and gives it to her 
husband, and he also partakes : Their eyes are opened 
to the knowledge of good and evil ; they see that they 
are naked, and hide themselves from God; sew fig- 
leaves together for garments to hide their nakedness. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



35 



God comes into the garden, in the cool of the day, 
calls for the man, and asks him if he had eaten of the 
forbidden fruit. He answers, that the woman whom 
God gave him, gave unto him and he ate. The woman 
is next interrogated, and she lays it to the serpent's 
guile. The ground is cursed, for Adam's sake ; when he 
tills it, it is to produce briars and thorns ; he is to eat 
his bread, by the sweat of his face, and at last return to 
the dust. The woman's conception was to be multi- 
plied in sorrow, and her desire was to be to her hus- 
band, and he was to rule over her. The serpent was 
cursed above all cattle, was to go on his belly, and to 
eat dust as long as he lived. This is, in short, the 
scripture representation of the first sin ; and I consider 
it to be figurative. 

Should it be said, that this garden was a literal gar- 
den, that the tree of life was a literal tree, and that the 
tree of the knowledge of good and evil was also literal ; 
I should be glad to be informed, what evidence can be 
adduced in support of such an idea. Where is the gar- 
den now? Where is the tree of life now ? Where is 
the tree of knowledge of good and evil now ? Are 
those trees now growing on the earth as literal trees ? 
We are not informed, in the scripture, that this garden 
was carried off to heaven, or that either of those trees 
was removed. It is written, that God drove the man 
whom he had made out of the garden, and placed 
cherubims and a flaming sword at the east of the gar- 
den, to prevent the man from approaching the tree of 
life. If the garden were literal, why could not Adam 
have gone into it on the north, south, or west side ? 

The path-way of understanding is now open and 
clear. God saw fit, in his plan of divine wisdom, to 
make the creature subject to vanity ; to give him a 



56 



TREATISE 



mortal constitution ; to fix in his nature those faculties 
which would, in their operation, oppose the spirit of 
the heavenly nature. It is, therefore, said, that God 
put enmity between the seed of the woman, and that 
of the serpent. And it was by the passions which 
arose from the fleshy nature, that the whole mind be- 
came carnal, and man was captivated thereby. 

But perhaps the objector will say, this denies the 
liberty of the will, and makes God the author of sin. 
To which I reply, desiring the reader to recollect what 
I have said of sin in showing its nature ; by which it 
is discovered, that God may be the innocent and holy 
cause of that, which, in a limited sense, is sin ; but as it 
respects the meaning of God, it is intended for good. 
It is not casting any disagreeable reflections on the 
Almighty, to say he determined all things for good ; 
and to believe he superintends all the affairs of the 
universe, not excepting sin, is a million times more to 
the honor of God than to believe he cannot, or that he 
does not when he can. The reader will then ask, if 
God must be considered as the first, the holy, and the 
innocent cause of sin, is there any unholy or impure 
causes ? I answer, there is, but in a limited sense. 
There is no divine holiness in any fleshly or carnal ex- 
ercise : there is no holiness nor purity in all the decep- 
tions ever experienced by imperfect beings ; and these 
are the immediate causes of sin ; and as such, they 
make the best of men on earth groan, and cry out, 
" Who shall deliver me from the body of this death ? " 

If it should be granted, that sin will finally terminate 
for good, in the moral system, it will then be necessary 
to admit that God is its first cause, or we cannot say 
that God is the author of all good. If we say, that sin 
is not for the good of God's system, but is a damage, 



ON ATONEMENT. 



37 



we must also say that God would have prevented its 
taking place, ifit had been in his power ; if it were not 
in his power, he is not Almighty ; neither can we say 
he is Supreme in an unlimited sense, as he was not 
superior to the causes which produced sin. But, to 
say ? that God is the author of sin, says the reader, 
sounds very badly, let you put what coloring you 
please upon it ; and if I believed it, I should not dare 
to say it. Well what shall I say, in order to please? 
Say the Devil was the author of sin. But did the 
Devil make himself? No; God made him an holy 
angel, and he made himself a devil, by transgression. 
Well, God made an angel, and that angel made 
a devil of himself, or any thing else, proves that 
God was the first cause as directly as any thing 
which I have argued. The objector will further 
say, that that angel was made a moral agent, and 
therefore ought to be considered the author of his 
own sin. But I say, in reply, that if God produced an 
agency, and that agency produced sin, it argues that 
God is the first cause, and agency the second and ef- 
fective cause. If this mode of reasoning be faulted, I 
ask, is not God the origin and cause of all moral right- 
eousness ? None can be perverse enough to say no ; 
then I ask, again, If moral agency, created by God, be 
not the original cause of moral righteousness, by 
what rule of reasoning can it be made the original 
cause of transgression ? But I have before refuted 
the notion about this sinning angel. I now call the 
attention of the reader to man, which is our proper 
study ; and attend to the objection as it respects the 
liberty of the will. But, in the first place, for the sake 
of the argument, I will consent to any liberty of the 
will which is contended for ; and then ask, what ws^ 
4 



33 



TREATISE 



the cause of man's having liberty of will ? My 
opponent must allow it was God. Well, if God pro- 
duced a liberty of will in man, and that liberty of will 
produced sin, is there any great difficulty in seeing, 
that that is making God the original cause of sin, in 
every sense in which I have argued it ? What would 
the objector wish to be understood to mean, by will ? 
If it be any thing more or less than choice, I am at a 
loss about it. If it be choice, then what we have to 
look into, is the liberty of choice. In order for choice 
to take place, the mind must have perceptions of two, 
or more objects ; and that object which has the most 
influence on the judgment and passions, will be the 
chosen object ; and choice, in this instance, has not 
even the shadow of liberty. None will be vain enough 
to say, that will, or choice has any liberty before it 
exists, and choice does not exist until an object is cho- 
sen ; and to say, choice has liberty to refuse an object 
after it is chosen, is using violence on terms. And the 
same will be the conclusion if we take the word will 
A person is invited, by two friends, to make them 
a visit the same afternoon, at their respective houses ; 
he wishes to visit both, but cannot at the same time. 
In this circumstance, honored with both their invita- 
tions, he feels at a real loss what answer to make ; 
both insist on his compliance, with equal earnestness, 
and with equal influence on his judgment and passions, 
he still remains without a determination. To end 
the affair, one of his friends says, I will go with you, 
this afternoon, and visit our friend, if you and he will 
return the visit next week. This decides in the mind 
of him who was first invited, as the other consents to 
the proposal. Now, choice, or will, is in favor of vis- 
iting, according to the last proposal made. Until the 



ON ATONEMENT. 



39 



man willed to go, the will to go did not exist ; it could 
have no liberty before it did exist ; and after it did, to 
say, that that will which was to go one way, was at 
liberty to go the other, is using the violence before men- 
tioned. It is then evident, that will, or choice, has no 
possible liberty. The objector will now move his posi- 
tion, and say, it is the mind that has this liberty to 
choose, or not choose ; to will, or not will. In order to 
determine this matter justly, I first ask, does the power 
of choosing exist in the mind, or in the object chosen ? 
If it be answered, that the power of choice is in the 
mind, and not in the object which influences the mind, 
the man who was at a loss to determine which of his 
friends to visit, while the objects were in equal force on 
his mind, w r as entirely ignorant of it ; and admitting it 
was so, it might as well have been otherwise, for the 
power of choosing in his mind, did him no good ; he 
was after all, dependent on a certain circumstance, 
which, being attached to one object, made it prefera- 
ble to the other. — Again, admitting the power of choice 
to be attributed to the mind, and not to the object 
which gives perceptions to the mind and influences it, 
it must be as easy for the mind to choose a minor, as 
a major object. It will be granted, on all sides, that 
persons may choose an object in preference to another, 
which is not half so valuable ; but this is always in 
consequence of error in judgment. Now it is as ob- 
jects appear to the mind, that we ought to consider 
them in our present query. Supposing a poor man, 
who has a wife and some hungry children to feed, is 
offered a dollar or a guinea, for a day's work ; he does 
not know the value of either, not being acquainted 
with money, or its value, or the nature of the metals 
which are stamped with value. He consults, or means 



40 



TREATISE 



to consult the good of those for whom he is willing to 
labor, and would if possible receive that which would 
do the most towards removing their wants ; and says 
to himself, the dollar is much the largest, and the prob- 
ability is, it is worth three times as much as the guin- 
ea; it is finally his opinion that that is the case- 
Now I ask in relation to my argument, which of those 
pieces of money will he be most likely to choose ? 
The answer is, the dollar. But I ask, why ? If his 
mind be at real liberty, it is no more attached to the 
dollar than to the guinea; the influence which the 
dollar has on his mind more than the guinea, destroys 
not the liberty of the mind to choose the guinea ; I 
wish to be told, why he is more likely to choose the 
dollar than the guinea. Or, to alter the statement, so 
that the mind is not deceived. The man perfectly 
knows the value of both guinea and dollar. The good 
of his wanting family is what he means to consult ; 
which will he be most likely to choose in this case ? 
answer, the guinea. I ask, again, why ? Is there any 
reason, or is there not ? There is, and it is the great- 
er value. Then the object governs the choice. I ask, 
in the above instance, had the mind any potoer or lib- 
erty to choose the object which appeared of the least 
value, and refuse that which appeared of the greatest? 
I am sure there is not a person in the world who would 
say that it had. Again, admitting, for the sake of the 
argument that the mind possesses this imaginary liberty ; 
I then ask, how came it to possess such liberty ? An- 
swer, God gave it. Then the matter stands thus, God 
produced a mind, and gave it liberty to will, or choose, 
and it wills or chooses ; I ask, what is the original 
cause of this willing and choosing ? The reader will 
easily see, that if I grant my opponent's arguments* 



ON ATONEMENT. 



41 



it will not be to his advantage. Again, for the last 
time, if God gave to man a liberty whereby he can 
choose or refuse the same object, did he not give his 
creature a liberty which he did not possess himself? 
Did not the Infinitely Wise eternally know all that he 
himself would do ? It must be granted. Then I ask, 
again, does he possess any liberty in his nature, where- 
by it is in his power to abandon the general system 
contained in his divine omnisciency, and embrace one 
entirely different? I am sure there are but few in the 
world who would not say, as did the apostle, " He 
cannot deny himself." If the creature possess any 
ability which is not in his Creator, I would ask, first, 
where he got it? And, secondly, if the Almighty 
knew all the consequences which would arise from 
such an ability ? If the answer be in the negative, it 
argues that his wisdom is finite and limited, and that 
he does not know but this unaccountable ability of 
willing and choosing may finally destroy his whole 
plan in creation, providence and redemption ! If it be 
granted, that he did know all the consequences that 
would arise from this ability of willing and choosing, 
which is called liberty of will, it is denying its exis - 
tence. For if those consequences are all known, it ar" 
gues they were all certain, and none of them avoid" 
able. 

Having, as I hope, to the reader's satisfaction? 
answered the objections in respect to the liberty of 
the will, I would again invite him back to our sub- 
ject. 

The immediate causes of sin are found in our nat- 
ural constitutions, and the most distant of those imme- 
diate causes are the same as the most distant of the 
immediate causes of our virtues ; but the most imme- 
4 * 



42 



TREATISE 



diate causes of our virtues and our vices are extreme- 
ly different. For instance, two men meet at an inn ; 
both of them have families which are in want of 
bread; they have each fifty cents, which they have 
Just taken for their day's work. One says, to the 
other, come, sit down, and we will take some drink, 
for our comfort, after a hard day's labor. The other 
reflects in his mind, and says to himself, to let my 
children suffer,, at home, to gratify my company in 
what is indifferent to me, would be abominable, having 
no particular appetite for spirits ; he, therefore, refus- 
es, bids his company good night, goes and purcha- 
ses necessary provisions for his family, and goes 
home. He has done as a virtuous, honest husband 
ought to do. The other possesses a violent appetite 
for ardent spirits ; the moment he comes where it is 
his want of it overpowers his love and duty to his 
family, the latter object being at a distance, and the 
former being nigh ; he calls for drink until he spends 
his fifty cents, and then goes home to his expecting 
family intoxicated. In this, according to the scrip- 
tures, though he were a professed christian, he is 
worse than an infidel. 

In the mirror presented, the reader may see, that 
those two men acted equally alike from their natu- 
ral wants, appetites and passions. Had neither of 
them any wants, appetites or passions, neither of them 
would have done any thing at all. They would not 
have labored for the money ; and if they had the 
money, they would not have laid it out in any way 
possible. Therefore, we see, that want, appetite and 
passion, in one, produced virtue, and in the other 
vice. But, the still more immediate causes were not 
the same in both persons ; and the consequences to 



ON ATONEMENT. 



43 



them, in a moral sense, differ as much, as did the 
most immediate circumstances which produced their 
conduct. One felt the approbation of a good con- 
science in having done what cool, dispassionate rea- 
son dictated ; the other, as soon as his eyes are open- 
ed to see what he has done, is struck with condem- 
nation for having violated the dictates of that law of 
prudence and equity, of which he was susceptible. 

A beggar influenced by hunger, calls at the door 
of the affluent for food ; he knows it is there ; his ap- 
petite is good ; the object magnifies to his senses; but 
by one who knows the love of property more than the 
want of food, he is sternly denied. The beggar pros- 
trates himself and moves his suit in language of dis- 
tress, reducing his petition to only a piece of bread ; 
the covetous man is a little moved, with some small 
feelings of compassion, but fearing that if he should 
bestow, he should consequently be troubled again, 
bids the beggar depart, and leaves him. The beg- 
gar's object was food, and his passion hunger; he 
acted up to the influence of his object, and did all in 
his power to obtain it. The other's object was the 
saving of his property, and his passion was covet- 
ousness ; he acted up to the influence of his object, 
to the gratification of his passion. Now, had the cir- 
cumstance been varied so much as this, that he did not 
think his giving, at that time, would ever induce him 
to call again, the probability is, his object and his pas- 
sion would both have been different ; to feed an hun- 
gry man, w r ould have been his object, and charity his 
passion. 

Man's main object, in all he does, is happiness; 
and were it not for that, he never could have any oth- 
er particular object. What would induce men to 



44 



TREATISE 



form societies; to be at the expense of supporting 
government ; to acquire knowledge ; to learn the 
sciences, or till the earth, if they believed they could 
be as happy without, as with ? The fact is, man 
would not be the being that he now is, as there 
would not be any stimulus to action ; he must be- 
come inert, therefore cease to be. As men are never 
without this grand object, so they are never without 
their wants which render such an object desirable. 
But their minor objects vary, accordingly as their un- 
derstanding vary, and their passions differ. 

Then, says the objector, there is no such thing as 
disinterested benevolence. We answer, words are used 
to communicate ideas ; there is that, often, in our ex- 
perience, which is meant by disinterested benevolence. 
An American is travelling in Europe ; he meets, in the 
street, a young and beautiful fair, bathed in tears, her 
breast swollen with grief, and her countenance per- 
fectly sad. His heart, fraught with the keenest sensi- 
bility is moved compassionately to inquire the cause 
of her grief; he is informed that her father, in a late 
sickness, became indebted to his physician twenty 
guineas, for which he was that hour committed to 
goal, when he had but partially recovered his health. 
Our traveller no sooner hears the story, than he ad- 
vances the twenty guineas to discharge the debt, and 
gives her fifty more as a reward for her generous con- 
cern. As our traveller did not expect any pecuniary 
reward, either directly or indirectly, his charity is 
called disinterested benevolence. But, strictly speak- 
ing, he was greatly interested; he was interested in 
the afflictions of father and child ; their relief was his 
object; and charity his passion. Now did he not act 
for his own happiness ? Yes, as much as ever a man 



ON ATONEMENT. 



45 



did in life. What must have been his misery, pos- 
sessing the same disposition, without the means to re- 
lieve ? And what a sublime satisfaction he enjoyed, 
by the bestowment of his favor ! Sacred truth informs 
us, u It is more blessed to give, than to receive." 

We find some men honest and industrious ; who 
think, and think justly, that happiness is not to be 
found in any other way. Others are indolent and 
knavish, and they expect to obtain happiness in so be- 
ing. But they are deceived in their objects ; and will 
finally learn, that they must be, what conscience has 
often told them they ought to be, honest and just, in 
order to be happy. 

The objector will say, to admit that our happiness, 
is the grand object of all we do, destroys the purity 
of religion, and reduces the whole to nothing but sel- 
fishness. To which, we reply, a man acting for his 
own happiness, if he seek it in the heavenly system 
of universal benevolence, knowing that his own hap- 
piness is connected with the happiness of his fellow 
men, which induces him to do justly, and to deal 
mercifully with all men, he is no more selfish than he 
ought to be. But a man acting for his own happi- 
ness, if he seek it in the narrow circle of partiality 
and covetousness, his selfishness is irreligious and 
wicked. 

We know it is frequently contended, that we ought to 
love God for what he is, and not for what we receive 
from him ; that we ought to love holiness for holiness* 
sake, and not for any advantage such a principle is to 
us. This is what we have often been told, but what 
we never could see any reason for, or propriety in. I 
am asked if I love an orange ; I answer I never 
tasted of one; but am told, I must love the or- 
ange, for what it is! Now I ask, is it possible 



46 



TREATISE 



for me either to like or dislike the orange, in reality, 
until I taste it ? Well, I taste of it, and like it. Do 
you like it? says my friend. Yes, I reply, its flavor 
is exquisitely agreeable. But that will not do, says my 
friend ; you must not like it because its taste is agree- 
able, but you must like it because it is an orange. If 
there be any propriety in what my friend says it is out 
of my sight. A man is travelling on the sands of 
Arabia, he finds no water for a number of days ; the 
sun scorches, and he is exceedingly dry; at last, he 
finds water and drinks to his satisfaction ; never did 
water taste half so agreeably before. To say, that this 
man loves the water because it is water, and not be- 
cause of the advantage which he receives from it, be- 
trays a large share of inconsistency. Would not this 
thirsty traveller have loved the burning sand as well as 
he did the water, if it had tasted as agreeably, and 
quenched his thirst as well ? The sweet Psalmist of 
Israel said, " O taste and see that the Lord is good" 
And an apostle says, "We love him because he first 
laved us." What attribute do we ascribe to God, that 
we do not esteem on account of its advantage to us ? 
Justice would have been no more likely to be attribu- 
ted to the Almighty than injustice, if it had not first 
been discovered that justice was of greater advantage 
to mankind than injustice. And so of power, were it of 
no more advantage to human society than weakness ; 
the latter would have been as likely to have been es- 
teemed an attribute of God, as the former. If wisdom 
were of no greater service to man than folly, it would not 
have beeen adored in the Almighty, any more than folly. 
If the love were no more happifying to man than ha- 
tred, hatred would as soon have been esteemed an attri 
bute of God, as love. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



47 



Undoubtedly the Almighty loves without an influen- 
tial object, as it would be erroneous to suppose that an 
infinite being could be operated upon. He loves be- 
cause his nature is to love. An apostle says, " God is 
love." The sun does not shine, because our earth 
influences it ; it is the nature of the sun to shine. But 
all created beings love, because of influential objects ; 
and they always love according to the influence which 
objects have on their minds and passions. It seems 
then, says the objector, that our vices are not to be at- 
tributed to the devil, but to the influence which objects 
have on our minds. Surely the reader ought to ex- 
pect, that after we have denied the existence of a being, 
we should, likewise deny his power. Perhaps, however, 
the reader may be surprised, to find that we do not be- 
lieve in the existence of a being so universally acknow- 
ledged among christian people, and which perhaps, 
has been of as much advantage to some, as the God- 
dess Bianna was to the craftsmen of Ephesus. But we 
are willing to give our reasons for not belie vi ng with 
the multitude, in this particular. A created individual 
being cannot be in more than one place at the same time. 
But how many millions of places must this evil angel 
be in, at once, in order to perform the business which 
christians have allotted him? In order for us to be- 
lieve in such a being, we must give him the omnipres- 
ency of the Almighty, which belongs to none, in out 
opinion, but our Maker. Again to admit the existence 
of such a being, would be of no avail, as there is noth- 
ing for him to do. There is, says the objector ; he 
tempts men to sin. But does he tempt men contrary 
to their passions and the influence of their motives ? 
Answer, no. Then the temptation is of no possible 
consequence. Supposing a man to be exceedingly 



48 



TREATISE 



hungry, and an agreeable meal is set before him, 
and he invited to refresh ; at that moment, the devil 
comes, and tempts him to eat. What effect would the 
temptation have on the hungry man ? Or supposing^ 
in room of tempting him to eat, he should tempt him 
not to eat, would he be likely to succeed ? But what 
means the scripture, which speaks of a devil ? one 
who was a liar from the beginning, &c. We answer, we 
have no objection to believing, that there is such a 
devil as the scripture speaks of. He is called the 
old Serpent, and is the same we have described, which 
beguiled the woman in the beginning; and it is the 
carnal mind which is enmity against God. " I will put 
enmity between thee and the woman," said the Lord, 
" between her seed and thy seed." An apostle says, 
" The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit 
against the flesh, that ye cannot do the things ye 
would." And, that this was the first beguiler, we may 
learn, from the scripture, before quoted, which saith, 
u Lust, when it conceived, brought forth sin ; and, sin 
when it was finished, brought forth death." An apostle 
also says, " When a man is tempted, he is drawn away 
with his own lusts, and enticed. Any person, who is 
wholly dictated by a fleshly mind, may justly be called 
a devil, as in the case of Judas and Peter. As our 
Lord said to the Jews, also, " Ye are of your father 
the devil; and the lusts of your father, ye will do." 
But says the objector, do you think our Saviour was 
tempted by the powers of the flesh, when it was said 
he was tempted by the devil ? We ask in our turn, for 
what is this particular circumstance introduced ? If 
we cannot prove, from our own experience, that we 
are tempted by some other being than our own fleshly 
appetites, would it be any thing more than a specular 



ON ATONEMENT. 



49 



tive belief, to admit another tempter ? But says the 
objector, that does not answer the question. Then let 
us look at his temptations; when he hungered, he 
was tempted ; by what ? and to what ? Answ r er, by 
hunger, to turn stones into bread. Here was a fleshly 
appetite. When he had a view of all the kingdoms 
of the earth, and their worldly glory, he was tempted 
to avail himself of them. Here was natural ambition, 
such as gave rise to the victories of an Alexander. 
When on the pinnacle of the temple, he was tempted to 
cast himself down, as it was written concerning him, that 
God would give his angels charge over him, &c. 
Here was that passion which gives rise to presumption, 
and wishes to avoid duty. But it is said, the devil 
iaketh him about, thus and so ; not literally, however, 
for there is no mountain in the world that commands 
a prospect of but a small part of the kingdoms of the 
world. In a, word, the scriptures inform us that he 
was tempted in all points as we are yet without sin. 
If, therefore, we know how we are tempted, we know 
also, how he was tempted. It is a sentiment of mine, 
that we ought not to argue that for truth, in matters of 
this nature, which we have no knowledge of, by expe- 
rience. 

Having illustrated the original cause, and the secon- 
dary causes of sin, I pass to take notice of its conse- 
quences. 

In order to have our work plain before us, I observe, 
sin is the fruits of the flesh, which are opposed to that 
true light, which lighteth every man who cometh into 
the world. And St Paul, as before quoted, says they 
are manifest. See Gal. v. 19, 20, 21. ' Now the works 
of the flesh are manifest which are these, adultry, for- 
nication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witch- 
5 



50 



TREATISE 



craft, hatred, variance, emulation, wrath, strife, sedi- 
tions, heresies, envying, murders, drunkenness, revel- 
lings and such like.' 5 These are the sins which our fleshly 
minds are daily producing, and their consequences are 
witnessed by a miserable world. By these sins, with 
their associates, mankind are rendered miserable in- 
deed. Social and domestic happiness are frequently 
destroyed. Cold and cruel jealousy murders the soft 
and tender passions of love, as Cain slew his brother. 
A garden, enclosed by the walls of fidelity, decked 
with the flowers of innocence, watered with the living 
streams of love, teeming with fruits of richest repast, 
and adorned with the vine of future prospects, is laid 
waste in an hour. Jealousy, like a foe bent on plunder 
flung down the wall, dried up the stream, and, like a 
devouring worm, gnawed the vine, that it perished ; 
the flowers droop, and the fruits wither away. Noth- 
ing remains but some faint vestiges of what is ruined, 
serving as evidence of the melancholy truth, that sin 
has found its way to this once happy place. 

Idolatry is the sin of worshipping that, which is 
not, in reality, the true God. The Old Serpent could 
never long hold the creature in captivity, if he did not 
allow him a god to worship, and religious duties to 
amuse him. Man is constituted in such relation to 
God that to worship, is perfectly natural. Then, in 
order for the carnal mind to take the lead of the 
whole man, it must introduce a god to be worship- 
ped, and religious duties, whereby this god may be 
pleased, and make the creature believe, that this god 
is the true god, and that those religious duties are of 
the genuine kind. But this god will surely possess 
all the vile passions of the old man, Adam, and those 
religious duties must consist in certain rites which 



ON ATONEMENT. 



51 



bear no relation to heaven-born charity, or deeds of 
kindness. An Almighty, omnipresent, infinitely wise 
and good, may be talked of ; but his wisdom, power 
and goodness must be denied ; and he must be a great 
many millions of miles off, fixed to a certain place, 
yet every where present ; infinitely wise, and power- 
ful, yet suffers an everlasting violation of his will; 
possessed of infinite wisdom, yet, is disappointed in 
his plans ; loves some of his creatures* and hates oth- 
jers ; is pleased and displeased with the conduct of 
his creatures ; is perfectly unchangeable, yet loves, at 
one time, and, at another, hates the same object. 
Such an idol will answer for thousands. Now what 
are the consequences ? Answer, one nation supposes 
itself the only favorite of God ; other people are haters 
of him, and hated by him. If our God hates those 
who hate him, we ought to do as our God does, 
and hate ■ them too. One denomination of chris- 
tians has different ideas of the attributes of their God 
from another ; they are violently opposed to each oth- 
er ; they are at swords' points ; they call each other 
heretics, and doom each other to the endless wrath 
of their God ! All such religion is of the flesh ; the 
wisdom of it is not from above, but is earthly, sensu- 
al and devilish, and those who possess it are tormented 
day and night with it. Reader, turn over the pages 
of history, calculate the rivers of blood which have 
been shed on account of religious disputes, and ask 
yourself the question, Is this religion worthy of a Su- 
preme Being? The devil will have religion, and will 
have it maintained as long as he can ; but then, he 
must tell the people, that it is none of his, but that it 
came from the true and living God, or they will not 
believe it It is an object with the Old Serpent, to 



52 



TREATISE 



have a great many denominations, and to persuade 
them that they are individually right, and individu- 
ally wrong, and to stir up their minds to maintain 
their respective tenets, and to wage war with each 
other, which he calls contending earnestly for the 
faith. Many who profess to be called by Him who 
loved sinners, to preach his gospel, and who pretend 
to follow the Saviour, in the path of meekness, if 
they happen to think a little differently, in matters of 
faith, they are filled with the greatest vehemency to- 
wards each other, which they call holy wrath, or in- 
dignation ; and you might as well reason with hungry 
lions, or tigers, as w ith them, for they worship the 
beast and they partake largely of his nature. Did 
they worship the true God, in the spirit of the heaven- 
ly man, difference, in particular sentiments, would not 
hinder their fellowship, and love of one another. All the 
religion in our world, founded on the partial princi- 
ples of man's inventions, pointing out particular 
modes of faith, and forms of worship, is from the 
carnal man. Discord and contention ensue ; wars 
and fightings are the consequences; hatred, wrath, 
strife, emulation, and rivalship, rage in the minds? of 
those who possess this spurious religion. Wh&t I 
say, is a truth of universal notoriety ; and yet, what is 
very strange, is, people are not convinced of it. As if 
a monstrous wolf should ravage, in open day light, 
in the high and low parts of the shepherd's pasture, 
gorging his carnivorous appetite with the blood and fat 
of the flock ; and the shepherd thinks it is all well, 
because somebody, on whose sleeve he pins his faith, 
has told him that, that creature is a sheep, and that it 
will do no harm ! How miserable has religion made 
mankind ! But, says the reader it was sin that you 



ON ATONEMENT. 53 

were to tell the consequences of, not religion. We tell 
you, kind reader, that the religion of which we speak, 
is opposed to every decree of the spirit of life in 
Christ Jesus, which has ever been revealed to man- 
kind, and, therefore, is sin ; and that which is attend- 
ed with the most pernicious consequences. It is this 
kind of religion which takes away the " key of know- 
ledge ; " its votaries neither enter the kingdom of hea- 
ven themselves, nor suffer those to enter who would. 
All worship, which is dictated by modes and forms, as 
inventions of men, is opposed to the true worship. 
" The Father seeketh such to worship him, who wor- 
ship him in spirit and in truth" Nothing suits the 
canial mind better than religion; but it must be a 
child of her own, and must look just like herself. 
The carnal mind being the hot bed where all the 
roots of bitterness grow which trouble mankind, we 
ought to look there, for the foundation of all that re- 
ligion which bears the features of the serpent. Pride 
is the most prominent characteristic of a fleshly 
mind, its religion dictates to look with contempt on 
those who are not of the same mode of faith, who 
do not subscribe to the same articles of belief, and are 
not called by the same denomination ; and says, 
" Stand by thyself, come not nigh me, for I am holier 
than thou." It dictates to give thanks for not being 
like others; it boasts of performances wrought with 
great pains and expense ; it boasts of having " borne 
the burden and heat of the day," and dictates to ex- 
pect more than others receive: "But the carnal 
mind," says the reader, " makes no use of the scrip- 
tures, does it ? " Always, be sure, where it is fash- 
ionable to believe them, and men are despised if they 
do not. Any thing will do, of which the creature is 
5* 



54 



proud, and is willing to persecute others for not 
adopting. But ought not men to be despised, and 
called all to naught, who do not believe the bible to 
be the word of God ? The Old Serpent will answer, 
yes, where it suits his turn best; but the spirit of 
Christ answers, no, in all cases. If the scriptures 
be not the word of God, men ought not to be despised 
for not believing them ; and if they are they ought not 
to be despised, but pitied and enlightened. Remem- 
ber, our acceptable High Priest was one who could 
" have compassion on the ignorant, and on them who 
were out of the way." Emulation, or rivalship, is one 
of the works of the flesh, and it is enmity against the 
meek and humble spirit of Christ ; and its consequen- 
ces are pernicious beyond description. In matters 
called religion we see much of its iniquity, as well as 
in natural things. One denomination wishes to rival 
another; one preacher wishes to rival another; and 
how often is it the case, that professed christians will 
act more underhandedly, to obtain an advantage over 
a professor of a different denomination, than a com- 
mon jockey is willing to do, in order to obtain a bar- 
gain. And we will say more, we have often seen, in the 
same churches, persons at such variance, about matters 
of their religion, that truth, seemed not to be regard- 
ed, in the least on either side ; each would strive to 
crush his brother, until two parties were formed, and 
a whole town set in an uproar. This is the religion 
which pleases the carnal mind, but it is death. One 
nation looks with an envious eye on the increasing 
wealth and population of another. She forms a sub- 
terfuge, as a pretext for declaring war against her 
neighbor, by which the two nations are drawn into a 
contention ; a long war ensues, bringing horrors, to 



ON ATONEMENT. 



55 



describe which, would swell a volume to an enormous 
size. Look on France and England, this moment, and 
for many years back. Who could calculate one half 
the miseries produced from the spirit of rivalship be- 
tween these potent rivals. How many brave youth 
have fallen a sacrifice to ambition ; how often has the 
ground drunk copious draughts of human blood ; the 
bosom of the deep been reddened with the gore of the 
slain ; and Sharks and Sea Dogs fed on the sons of 
mourning fathers and weeping mothers; while the 
leaders of this calamity make high professions of the 
religion of the meek and lowly Jesus, and are fre- 
quently sending out their proclamations for fasts, and 
for prayers to Almighty God, to assist them in human 
butchery! " From whence come wars and fightings 
among you? come they not even from your lusts, 
which war against the soul ? " It is recorded in the 
scriptures, that the love of money is the root of all 
evil. But men would have no love for money, were 
it not for the earthly advantages obtained by it. 
Then, the passion is covetousness, and the conse- 
quence is mischievous to mankind. One, for the sake 
of money, will steal, another will lie, another counter- 
terfeit the currency, and another will murder. Were 
it not for the sake of property, would men do these 
things ? Answer, no. Then, in relation to what we 
have before argued, we ask, would men be industrious, 
were it not for the sake of property ? Answer, no ; 
then the case is plain, that they both act from the 
same main passion, which is want, and to the same 
main object, which is happiness. But their minor ob- 
jects and their minor passions vary. What need 
would there be of government, were it not for sin ? 
If all were willing to do, as they would be done by, 



56 



TREATISE 



what an enormous expense would be saved ; as it 
would render governmental laws useless. But by 
reason of men's passions, and mistaken objects influ- 
encing them, our lives are exposed to be taken by our 
neighbors, our property pillaged, our hard earnings 
wrung by violence away, and our midnight slumbers 
interrupted by banditti, and, in short, all that is dear 
to us, to be taken from our enjoyment. " He, who 
loveth not his brother, is a murderer/' Are not all 
men murderers ? do they not sometimes experience 
the lack of brotherly love ? This murderous passion 
is sin, it is opposed to the language of the heavenly 
man in the mind ; but what are its consequences ? 
Every one endeavors to supplant his brother ; no one 
is safe, in his feelings, while he is in the hands of his 
brother. When this passion reigns, all the tender 
charities of humanity are suppressed ; all the bowels 
of compassion are frozen ; a deaf ear is turned to the 
cries and calls of the needy in distress ; the poor are 
despised by the rich, the rich are envied by the poor ; 
parents are dishonored by their children ; children are 
abused, and provoked to anger by their parents. The 
vile affections of sin will burn to the destruction of the 
sweetest harmonies of nature ; the whitest robes of 
innocence are stained with its indelible crimson; 
the soul is drowned in the black waters of iniquity, 
and the whole mind, with every faculty, is plunged 
into the hell of moral death. 

Yet, listen to the worst of torments, in consequence 
of sin. "A wounded conscience, who can bear?" 
A fire that burns all the day long, a sword that con- 
tinually pierceth the soul, a sting that cannot exhaust 
its poison, a fever that never turns till the patient 
dies. " A dart struck through his liver" What 



ON ATONEMENT. 



57 



ails the sinner ? why his hand on his breast ? There 
gnaws the worm that never dies, there burns the fire 
that is never quenched. A consciousness of guilt 
destroys all the expected comforts and pleasures of sin. 
How strange it is, that after a thousand disappoint- 
ments in succession, men are not discouraged. O 
sin ! how you paint your face ; how you flatter us, 
poor mortals, on to death ; you never appear to the 
sinner in your true character ; you make us fair pro- 
mises, but you never fulfilled one; your tongue is 
smoother than oil, but the poison of asps is under your 
lips ; you have impregnated all our passions with the 
venom of your poison ; you have spread gloomy dark- 
ness over the whole region of the soul ; you have en- 
deavored, with your stupefactive poison, to blunt the 
sword in the hands of the cherubims, which, for your 
sake, keeps us from the tree of life. 

A mistaken idea has been entertained of sin, even 
by professors. I have often heard sincere ministers 
preach, in their reproofs to their hearers, that it was 
the greatest folly in the world, for people to forego 
salvation, in a future state, for the comforts and pleas- 
ures of sin in this. Such exhortations really defeat 
their intentions. The wish of the honest preacher is, 
that the wicked should repent of their sins, and do 
better ; but, at the same time, he indicates, that sin at 
present, is more productive of happiness than right- 
eousness ; but that the bad will come in another world 
that although doing well is a hard way, yet its advan- 
tages will be great, in another state. Just as much as 
any person thinks sin to be more happifying than 
righteousness, he is sinful ; his heart esteems it though 
in some possible cases, for fear of the loss of salvation 
in the world to come, he may abstain from some out- 



58 



TREATISE 



ward enormities ; yet, his heart is full of the desire of 
doing them. A thief passes a merchant's shop, wish- 
es to steal some of his goods, but durst not, for fear of 
apprehension and punishment. Is this man less a 
thief at heart, for not actually taking the goods ? 

I have been told, by persons of high professions in 
Christianity, that if they were certain of salvation in 
the world to come, they would commit every sin to 
which their unbridled passions might lead them ; even 
from the lips of some who profess to preach the right- 
eousness of Christ, have I heard such-like expres- 
sions ! I do not mention these things to cast reflec- 
tions on any person or denomination in the world ; for 
I have a favorable hope, that there are some in all 
denominations, who are not so decieved ; but I men- 
tion them in order to show how deceiving sin is, 
to the mind. It is as much the nature of sin to tor- 
ment the mind, as it is the nature of fire to burn 
our flesh. Sin deprives us of every rational enjoyment 
so far as it captivates the mind; it was never able to 
furnish one drop of cordial for the soul; her tender 
mercies are cruelty, and her breasts of consolation are 
gall and wormwood. Sin is a false mirror, by which 
the sinner is deceived in every thing on which his 
mind contemplates. If he think of his Maker, who is 
his best friend, it strikes him with awe, fills his mind 
with fearful apprehensions, and he wishes there was no 
such being. If he think of any duty which he owes 
his Maker, he says in a moment, God is a hard master 
why should he require of me what is so contrary to my 
happiness ? Religion is only calculated to make men 
miserable ; righteousness blunts my passions, and de* 
prives me of pleasures for which I long. But it repre- 
sents stolen waters to be sweet, and bread eaten in se- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



59 



cret to be pleasant. In a word, sin is of a torment- 
giving nature to every faculty of the soul, and is the 
moral death of the mind. 

Well, says the reader, can sin have all those evil ef- 
fects, and not be infinite ? Undoubtedly ; as all those 
evil effects are experienced in this finite state. Thou- 
sands, who, I hope, are gone to greater degrees of rest 
than the most upright enjoy here, were once tormented 
with sin, were once under the dominion of the carnal 
mind. The effects of sin, as sin, are not endless, but 
limited to the state in which it is committed. This 
perhaps, will be contrary to the opinion of many who 
read this treatise, as they are wont to suppose, that 
there are three cardinal consequences produced by sin, 
viz. Death temporal, death spiritual, and death eter- 
nal. As to the first of these consequences, I say Men 
die natural deaths, because they are naturally mortal; 
but they are not mortal because of sin, for man was 
mortal before he sinned; if he were not, he never 
could have sinned. Our opponent will say, that the 
death of the body is the consequence of sin, when one 
man murders another ; to which we reply, one man 
could not murder another, if men were not mortal. 
Sin cannot be said to be the cause of natural death, 
any more than of natural life. We will acknowledge 
that sin is often the means whereby natural life is end- 
ed, and our opposer must acknowledge, that it is often 
the means of persons being introduced into natural 
life. Perhaps an hundred are introduced into exist- 
ence by illicit connexions, where one is taken out by 
malice prepense. But the meaning of the objector is, 
that man became mortal by sin ; to which we reply, 
if immortality be corruptible by sin, the christian hope 
of immortality is a vain one. The death which Ad- 



60 



TREATISE 



am died, in consequence of sin, happened on the day 
of transgression, if we may believe the scripture ac- 
count about it; but Adam did not die a natural 
death, on that day, nor for some hundreds of years 
afterwards. 

The way in which many have tried to reconcile the 
scriptures with their traditions, in this matter, appears 
strange to us ; they quote 2 Peter, iii. 8. " But, be- 
loved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day 
with the Lord, is as a thousand years, and a thousand 
years as one day ; and as Adam died short of a thous- 
and years, he died in the day of transgression. But, 
in order for the text to read to their meaning, it ought 
to read thus, " One day with the Lord is a thousand 
years, and a thousand years is one day ; " as they un- 
derstand the text, the conjunction as has no possible 
meaning. In respect to spiritual death, we believe it 
was all that was meant by the word, u in the day thou 
eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." But, if eternal 
death were also intended, there was no recovery for 
man. Why divines have carried this matter so errone- 
ously beyond all scripture testimony, we cannot imag- 
ine. But, it is said, spiritual or moral death would be 
eternal, were it not for the dispensation of the gos- 
pel, by which death is swallowed up of life. So we 
might say of any thing else, even of a momentary na- 
ture ; it would be eternal if it were never to end. 
The days of a man's life would be eternal, if they 
were never to end. The spring would be eternal, 
if it were not succeeded with the summer. A rose 
would be an eternal flower, if it never withered. 
And youth would be eternal, if it were not for old age 
and death. But what do all such arguments avail ? 
The grand, sublime and glorious system of God, car- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



Gl 



ries every thing away that has its birth from mortality 
and time. 

We have already hinted, that sin might have conse- 
quences which were not evil, but not as sin. By the 
infinite wisdom and goodness of the Almighty, sin may 
be of advantage even to the sinner himself ; but we say 
again, not as sin. If the infinitely Wise and Good in- 
tended any one thing for good, which we rightly call 
sin, that event, in respect to the divine intention, is 
not sin. We have introduced a circumstance, in the 
fore part of this work, in which, what we are now en- 
deavoring to illustrate, may clearly be seen. It is evi- 
dent that that which Joseph's brethren meant unto 
evil, God meant unto good. Now the immediate 
consequences of their sin, to them, was guilt of the 
first magnitude. Who could calculate the one half of 
what they endured, in consequence of the wrong which 
they had done ? But the consequences which God in- 
tended, in the issue of the event, were altogether ben- 
eficial; and those who committed the sin, by the 
mercy of God, were made the partakers of the benefits 
contained in the purpose of him who meant it for 
good. 

Again, it is evident from the scriptures, that Herod, 
Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, 
were gathered together against Jesus, to do what the 
council and the hand of the Almighty had determined 
to be done. See Acts iv. 27, 28. Had Herod, Pon- 
tius Pilate, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, any 
better meaning, in crucifying Christ, than Joseph's bre- 
thren had in selling Joseph to the Ishmaelites ? All 
who read the question, will answer, no. But the sa- 
cred text says, they were gathered together to do 
whatsoever God's hand and council had determined to 
6 



62 



TREATISE 



be done. Now we ask, was not the determination of 
the murderers of Christ, the same, with the determina- 
tion of Divine Wisdom? Says the reader, I cannot say 
it was not, and yet, I dare not say it was. We will then 
answer, the Almighty intended all they did, should be 
done ; but he intended it for a very different purpose 
from what they did, who did it. They intended the 
destruction and overthrow of the doctrine which 
Christ preached, and they hoped the things which he 
had spoken, concerning them, would fail of taking 
place. But the means which they used to oppose the 
cause of Christ, were those with which God intend- 
ed to promote it. They missed of their intentions, 
and the Lord carried the whole of his into effect. 
What christian is there in the world, who will say, 
the consequences of the death of Christ are not good ? 
or, that those who were his murderers, for whom he 
prayed on the cross, will not receive an advantage 
from his death, which thay meant for evil ? Or who 
can limit the good contained in the designs of the 
Almighty ? But will this rule do says the reader, to apply 
to all sin ? We answer without hesitancy, that we fully 
believe it. Food for the body would never please the 
appetite, unless we first experienced hunger ; the cool- 
ing spring would not be sought for, if men were never 
thirsty ; health could never be prized, could we not 
contrast it with sickness ; ease is appreciated, by the 
remembrance of pain ; and a physician would never be 
wanted, if it were not for our infirmities ; a Saviour 
would never have been praised, by his redeemed, had 
they never been in bondage ; the song, " Thou hast 
redeemed us to God, out of every kingdom and na- 
tion" could never be sung, had redemption not been 
needed ; a fountain would never have been opened 



ON ATONEMENT. 



63 



for Judah and Jerusalem to wash in, from sin and un- 
cleanness, had it not been for sin and uncleanness. 

Then, says our opponent, we may do evil, that good 
may come. This objection has often been stated to 
us, in conversation on this subject. Our reply is short 
There is a self-contradiction in the objection ; to do 
any thing whatever, for good, is not a moral trans- 
gression. Had Joseph's brethren been taught of God, 
that it was necessary for them to sell Joseph to the Ish- 
maelites, that he might go down to Egypt, and there pre- 
pare for the famine, and they had done it, for the good 
which God intended, it would have been no more sin, in 
them, than there was in the design of God. Then it is 
plain, that to do evil that good may come, is impossible 
Again, had Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and 
the people of Israel, intended the good which God in- 
tended, in the crucifixion of Christ, sin would have 
been out of the question. St. Paul asks the question 
to his opposers, after he had argued, that, where sin 
abounded grace did much more abound, " Shall we 
continue in sin, that grace may abound ?" And an- 
swers it thus, God forbid. How shall we, who are 
dead to sin, live any longer therein ? If we are truly 
enlightened into the nature of the all-abounding grace 
of the gospel, it causes us to die to sin ; and if we are 
dead to sin, we shall not live in it. God has for- 
bidden it, in the nature of things, and rendered it im- 
possible. 

As we have limited sin in its nature, the reader will 
not expect to find unlimited consequences attached to 
it, in this work. Were it so, that the fulness of the 
divine law was perfectly comprehended in the mind of 
the creature, and he should go contrary thereto, his 
sin would then be as infinite as the law transgressed ; 



64 



TREATISE 



Dut we argue, that the law transgressed, is a law formed 
in the mind of an imperfect being, by the imperfect 
knowledge which he obtains of the divine law, which 
is no other than God himself This knowledge be- 
ing imperfect, forms a law like itself, imperfect and 
mutable ; and an imperfect, mutable law does not af- 
ford data, from which to argue endless consequen- 
ces. The sacred oracle declares, " the soul that sins 
shall die If it had added and said, " and shall never 
live again" it would have carried the consequences of 
sin infinitely farther than the Holy Ghost intended. 
Sin is death to the soul, as long as it sins, be that time 
longer or shorter. In order to argue an endless conse- 
quence, we must first state an infinite cause ; and as we 
have argued sin on a finite scale, and in a limited cir- 
cle, we must rationally limit its consequences. 

We will now state two particulars, which the reader 
will find argued in the course of this work, state our 
opponent's objections against them, answer those ob„ 
jections, and introduce our second general inquiry, by 
stating a third objection. 

1st. Man is dependant in all his tolitions, and moves 
by necessity. 

2d. The Almighty has a good intention, in every vo- 
lition of man. 

Objection first. If man move by necessity, why 
do the scriptures abound with exhortations and admo- 
nitions to dissuade from sin, and so many inducements 
to persuade to holiness and virtue? And why are 
there requirements in the law, to which man is under 
the necessity of going contrary ? 

Objection second. If God has a good intention, in 
every action or volition of man, why is it said, in the 
scriptures, that he is grieved and provoked with 
us ? &c. 



ON ATONEMENT* 



65 



The proposition, against which the first objection 
stands, answers the objection, in all its parts. It was 
in the system of divine wisdom, that man should ex- 
perience a consciousness of sin and guilt, without 
which, the subject of my inquiry could never have ex- 
isted. If sin and guilt had never been introduced into 
our system, the plan of grace, by atonement, could 
never have been exhibited. Sin and guilt could never 
have existed, providing there had been no prohibition 
communicated to the intelligent mind ; and, on the 
other hand, if the mind possessed as much liberty to 
go contrary to inducements, as it does inclination to 
follow them, inducements, would have no possible ef- 
fect ; exhortations, admonitions, and warnings, would 
be of no possible service. 

If God purposed that man should come to the 
knowledge of his own infirmities in the way that he 
does, he must have intended all the means whereby 
the purpose might be accomplished. And if he de- 
signed, that any degree of moral holiness should be 
found on earth, such inducements must influence 
the minds of men, which would necessarily produce 
it. That God does in a strict sense of speaking, re- 
quire more of any of his creatures than they are able 
to perform, is inconsistent with the dictates of good 
reason, and destitute of scripture authority ; and has no 
better foundation for its support, than an idea that 
darkness originates in the sun, or light in an opaque 
body. But does riot God require perfect holiness of 
man? Does he not command strict obedience, to 
every jot and tittle of his law ? 

We have before argued, that the spirit of God's law, 
in its infinite fulness, was above the capacity of man in a 
finite state, in which he was made subject to vanity ; and 
6* 



66 



TREATISE 



that it was a limited knowledge of the law only that 
was introduced to the creature's understanding, and 
that for the purpose, that the offence might abound* 
Then, says our opponent, if you are correct, in this 
statement, does it not prove that the requirement is 
more than the abilities of the creature can perform ? 
And how can the difficulty be removed ? 

The proper answer to this question is derived from 
a due recurrence to the original constitution of man 
If we believe that man, as a moral being, was con- 
stituted to occupy this mortal state only, and that his 
whole existence is limited to this state, then must we 
conclude that in this mortal state, when we find health 
and sickness, pleasure and pain, virtue and vice, hap- 
piness and misery, the law of moral rectitude, being 
obeyed so far as to correspond with the law of phy- 
sical organization, which is productive of the natural 
health of the body, it answers the full extent of its pur- 
poses, and is as fully obeyed as the Creator designed 
it ever should be. It is evident that the designs of 
the Creator in the laws of corporeal or animal nature, 
embrace not only all the health and pleasure which 
corporeal beings enjoy ; but also all the sickness and 
pain they endure. So likewise, in this constitution of 
man, as a moral being, the law of moral rectitude was 
designed to administer not only those moral enjoy- 
ments, which are far the sweetest felicities with which 
we are blessed, but also those pungent compunctions 
of conscience which are our bitterest sufferings. If 
therefore we extend our views no farther than man's 
earthly state, we view it perfectly philosophical to con- 
clude that it was no more the design of the Creator 
that man should here enjoy perfect righteousness free 



ON ATONEMENT. 



67 



from the alloys of guilt, than it was that he should here 
enjoy uninterrupted health and ease of body. 

But in agreement with our view, before expressed, 
concerning man's original constitution, as a moral be- 
ing, in which he was made subject to vanity by reason 
of him who subjected him in hope, we embrace the 
doctrine of future, immortal life ; in which state man 
will be as free from sin and condemnation, as that im- 
mortal state will be free from sickness, corruption, and 
death. 

We, according to their views, look for present obe- 
dience to the divine law in that glorious constitution 
manifested in Christ, who hath abolished death, and 
brought life and immortality to light through the gos- 
pel, and who is said, to be, the Lord our righteous- 
ness. 

We come to take notice of the second objection. 
There are many passages of scripture, which represent 
the Almighty as possessing irritable passions, like his 
creatures. We are told, that it repented him that he 
had made man on the earth, and that it grieved him 
at the heart. These expressions are as strong in their 
. indication of changeability, as any that might be cho 
sen. An apostle exhorts, not to grieve the Holy Spi- 
rit ; and it is not unfrequent that God is provoked to 
anger and jealousy, according to scripture. Our op- 
ponent will not argue, that we ought to understand 
those scriptures as strictly and literally true ; no 
man, in his senses, can believe them so, and yet be- 
lieve the Almighty unchangeable. Supposing our op- 
ponents should give their own opinion of this ques- 
tion ; We have no doubt but they would remove the 
objection, to all intents. We understand those scrip- 
tures, as many others do, to be spoken according to 



68 



TREATISE 



the dark understanding of man, who is ignorant of 
the real character of God ; and according to the repre- 
sentations made by the law to the unreconciled mind. 
To admit, in a strict sense of speaking, that God was 
ever grieved to the heart, for what he did himself, or 
for what his creatures do, is more than we can, do, and 
believe in the perfections of his. St. James says, 
With God there is no variableness nor shadow of 
turning. This expression is as strong an indication 
of the unchangeability of the Almighty, as any that 
might be chosen. St. Paul informs us that God works 
all things after the council of his own will. Our be- 
ing led by a carnal and fleshly mind, is undoubtedly 
what the apostle meant, by grieving the Holy Spirit ; 
as the motions or volitions of the carnal man are op- 
posed to those of the heavenly ; but that the eternal 
Spirit of God ever felt grief, is more than we can ra- 
tionally admit, as that would reduce the Almighty to a 
state of suffering. It is very evident, that the scrip- 
tures represent the Almighty in extremely different 
characters ; and we confess we cannot reconcile them 
in any other way, than by the two covenants, or what 
is the same, flesh and spirit. Our ideas of God, while 
under the legal dispensation, walking in fleshly minds, 
are consonant to that character which the scripture 
represents our Creator in, as wrathful, filled with in- 
dignation towards us for our sins, and every day an- 
gry. Those ideas which the mind entertains of the 
father of all mercies when enlightened by the spirit of 
the new man, and while walking in the spirit of life in 
Christ Jesus, which maketh free from the law of sin, 
are altogether consonant to that endearing character 
given in scripture, of our Father who is in heaven, 
who cause th his sun to shine on the evil and on the 



ON ATONEMENT. 69 

good; and sendeth rain upon the just, and upon the 
unjust ; who loved us while ice were yet enemies, and 
sent his Son to die, in attestation of his love to his 
creatures ; who is good unto all, and whose tender 
mercies are over all his works ; who is of one mind, 
and changeth not. 

Says our opponent, if the Almighty govern all the 
affairs of mankind, according to his own appointment; 
if he were never disappointed ; suffers no violation of 
will ; but does, in all things, and by all things, main- 
tain and support his own eternal system of divine 
goodness, what room do we find, for the necessity of 
atonement, whereby peace is made by the blood of the 
cross ? 

By this question, we come to our second general 
subject, viz. 

ATONEMENT FOR SIN. 

In our inquiries on this momentous subject, we shall 

First, examine three doctrinal tenets on atonement ; 
from which, we shall beg leave to dissent, and give our 
reasons therefor. 

Secondly, Show the necessity of atonement, and 
where satisfaction must be made. 

Thirdly, Inquire into the personage and character of 
the Mediator, who makes the atonement, and his abili- 
ty to perform the work. 

Fourthly, Of atonement in its nature. 

Christian divines, in general, have agreed in sup- 
posing sin to be an infinite evil, being a violation of an 
infinite law, and, therefore, that the law required an 
infinite sacrifice ; short of which no atonement could 



70 



TREATISE 



be made ; that the transgression of Adam brought the 
whole human race into the same situation of sin and 
misery, and subjected them all to the infinite penalty 
of an infinite law, which they had violated in their 
parent, before they individually existed. 

After the above agreement, many different roads 
are taken ; and divines of the greatest abilities, and of 
the first rank among the literati, have drained the last 
faculty of invention, in plodding through the dark re- 
gions of metaphysics, to bring up a Samuel to explain 
the solecism of satisfying an infinite dissatisfaction. 

The plan of redemption, as held by many, may be 
reduced to the following compendium. God, from all 
eternity, foreseeing that man would sin, provided a 
Mediator for a certain part of his posterity, who should 
suffer the penalty of the law for them, and that these 
elect ones, chosen by God from the rest of mankind, 
will alone be benefitted by the atonement ; that, in or- 
der that the sacrifice might be adequate to the crime, 
for which, the sinner was condemned to everlasting, 
or endless suffering, God himself, assumed a body of 
flesh and blood, such as the delinquent was constituted 
in and suffered the penalty of the law by death, and 
arose from the dead. By this process, the demand of 
the law was completely answered, and the debt due to 
Divine Justice, by the elect, was fully and amply paid. 
But that this atonement does not affect those who 
were not elected as objects of mercy, but that they are 
left, to suffer endlessly for what Adam did, before they 
were born. It is true, they are a little cautious about 
saying, that God himself absolutely died! But they 
say, that Christ, who was crucified, was really God 
himself which must, in effect, amount to the same 
thing. And in fact, if an infinite being did not suffer 



ON ATONEMENT. 



71 



death the whole plan falls, for it is by an infinite sac- 
rifice that they pretend to satisfy an infinite dissatis- 
faction. 

Why the above ideas should ever have been imbi- 
bed, by men of understanding and study, We can but 
scarcely satisfy ourselves; their absurdities are so 
glaring, that it seems next to impossible, that men of 
sobriety and sound judgment should ever imbibe them, 
or avoid seeing them. 

We have already sufficiently refuted the idea of an 
infinite sin, which opens to a plain path, in which the 
mind may run, and run clear of all those perplexities 
which have served to confuse, rather than enlighten 
mankind. 

If sin be not infinite, the dissatisfaction occasioned 
by sin is not infinite, therefore an infinite sacrifice is 
not required. But, for the sake of illustration, we will 
for a moment admit, that the doctrine of atonement 
stands on the ground over which we have just gone 
We will state it as it is often stated by those who be- 
lieve it, which is by the likeness of debt and credit. 
The sinner owed a debt to Divine Justice, which he 
was unable to discharge; the Divine Being cannot, 
consistently with his honor, dispense with the pay, but 
says, I must have what is my due ; but as the debtor 
has not ability to pay the smallest fraction, Divine Wis- 
dom lays a deep concerted mysterious plan for the debt 
to be discharged. And how was it ? Why, for God 
to pay it himself? 

Our neighbor owes us a hundred pounds ; time of 
payment comes, and we make a demand for our dues. 
Says our neighbor, my misfortunes have been such, 
that I am not the possessor of the smallest fraction of 
property in the world ; and as much as I owe you I 



72 



TREATISE 



am worse than nothing. I declare to him, positively, 
that I will not lose so much as a fraction of the inter- 
est, and leave him. A friend calls, and asks me how 
I succeeded in obtaining my dues of my neighbor ; I 
reply, my neighbor is not, nor will he ever be able to 
pay me any part of my demand. My friend says, he 
is sorry that I should lose my debt. I answer, I shall 
not lose it. I have very fortunately, in my medita- 
tions on the subject, thought of a method, by which 
I can avail myself of the whole, to my full satisfac- 
tion ; and I think it is a method which no person in 
the world, but myself, could ever have discovered. 
My friend is curious, and impatient to know the se- 
cret, never before found out. The reader may guess 
his confusion, on my telling him, that, as I have that 
sum already by me, I am now going to pay upthe obli- 
gation, before the interest is any larger ! This has been 
called the gospel plan, which contains the depths of 
infinite wisdom. 

We shouldbe pleased to see, what we have never seen, 
professors following such example in obtaining what 
the poor widow, the fatherless, and the needy, owe 
them. But, says the advocate for the plan, a distinc- 
tion ought to be made, between the persons in the 
Godhead. It was the second person in the Godhead, 
who paid this infinite debt, to the first ; therefore, it is 
not altogether like a person paying his own demand. 
We say, in answer, if the first and second persons in the 
Godhead are not so essentially one as to make the 
debts due to one belong equally to the other, and pay- 
ment also, they are not so essentially one, as to be rep- 
resented by two distinct persons, related only by 
Adam, who are in Co. in merchandise. But, for the 
sake of carrying the argument still further, we will admit 



ON ATONEMENT. 



73 



this variety of persons in an infinite indivisible be- 
ing ! And also the plan of atonement on the princi- 
ple of the second person's paying the demand to the 
first. And here it will be necessary to introduce the 
third person in the Godhead, as it is contended that 
the third person makes known to the debtor, what the 
creditor determines concerning him. Then the plan 
of the doctrine may be represented by the following 
similitude : A owes B the sum of one thousand 
pounds ; the time of payment comes, demand is 
made ; A is not worth a farthing, neither is it in his 
power to raise a fraction of the money. B immediate- 
ly commences a process against A, of which C, a 
friend of A's, being informed, goes to B, asks him 
how large a demand he holds against A ; B informs 
him, a thousand pounds, and the interest. And is A 
worth nothing? asks C. Nothing, answers B. 
Would you make a deduction of twenty-five per cent, 
if you could have the money down ? asks C. Not 
the least deduction, answers B. You will, at least, 
throw in the interest, says C. Not the smallest frac- 
tion, answers B. Well, says C, if you have no mercy 
on the poor and distressed, I will have the pleasure of 
relieving the debtor alone ; counts out the money in 
full, and receives the obligation to bestow on his 
friend, A. B sends a servant immediately, to inform 
A, that he has concluded to forgive him the debt. A 
is transported at the news, flies to tell his wife and 
children the tidings of mercy, and all join in praising 
such heavenly benevolence. C comes in, the same 
moment, with the obligation in his hand; modestly 
gives it to A, desiring him to accept it as a token of 
sincere friendship. A is confounded, asks C how he 
came by the obligation ; C informs him, that he paid 
every farthing of the money for it, the creditor would 
1 



74 



TREATISE 



not make the least deduction. We leave the reader to 
judge, whether the creditor showed any mercy to the 
debtor, and whether B's pretension of favoring A, do 
not Wear the appearance of hypocrisy. It is contend- 
ed by those who hold to this debt, and the payment 
of it, that the salvation of the sinner is by being forgiv- 
en; yet, they contend, that the debt is paid. But 
how we can forgive a man a debt, and oblige him to 
pay it, is more than we can see. 

Again, admitting the system true, we wish to in- 
quire into the propriety of an innocent person's suffer- 
ing, for one who is guilty. It is scripture, reason, and 
good law, never to condemn the innocent, in order to 
exculpate the delinquent. Supposing a foreign court 
sends a person, who is old in conspiracies and bloody 
to America, to lay deep concerted plan to murder the 
President of the union, and a number of the first offi- 
cers in the federal goverment, for purposes mischievous 
to our political existence ; and he should so far suc- 
ceed, as to engage a number in this wicked design, 
and finally makes the attempt; his plans are discover- 
ed by goverment, and detected, but not until numbers 
have fallen a sacrifice to his mischievous endeavors. 
The leader of these seditious murderers, is taken and 
condemned to be executed; and the voice of every 
friend of justice and equity is against the criminal. 
But what would be the consternation of the good peo- 
ple of the United States, on being informed, that the 
good president of the union, the man whom the peo- 
ple delighted to honor, was executed, in the room of 
this seditious person, and the wicked murderer set at 
liberty ? Is it possible to conceive that there is a single 
person in the world, who would call this a just exe- 
cution ? If it be said, that the president freely offered 



ON ATONEMENT. 



75 



nimself in the room of the criminal, it alters not the 
case, in the eye of justice. If an innocent man can 
justly be put to death, because he consents to it will- 
ingly, a guilty one may be acquitted because he pre- 
fers it. But it is further agreed that the authori- 
ty had power to raise the president from the dead, 
which done, renders the work just and glorious. 
We say in answer that if the authority had this 
power, it might as well have executed the real 
criminal, and raised him from the dead, as to perform 
this work on one who was not guilty. What is the 
most shocking of any thing, in this system of atone- 
ment, is, the partiality represented in the Almighty ; 
for admitting the plan rational, as it respects those 
circumstances, in which we have shown its absurdity, 
what can we find in scripture, or reason, that justifies 
such infinite partiality in our Creator? or what can 
in the least, serve as evidence to prove him possessed 
of it ? Have we not reason to believe our Creator 
possessed of as much goodness as he has communicated 
to us ? Can we rationally believe, that he is wanting, in 
those principles of goodness which he has placed in our 
understandings ? When he saw the whole progeny of 
Adam in the same situation, by reason of sin, one no 
more guilty than another, why should he propose a 
plan of mercy for some few of them, and disregard the 
awful circumstances of the rest? The sacred oracle 
declares God to be no respecter of persons ; if this be 
true, he is not a partial being. Jesus taught the char- 
acter of God to his disciples, by turning their attention 
to nature, observing the equal distribution of rain and 
sunshine, on the evil and on the good, on the just and 
on the unjust. Supposing Joseph had dealt out bread 
plentifully to two of his brethren in Egypt, and had 
starved the rest to death, would it have looked like im- 



76 



TREATISE 



partiality ? It is argued, that none of them deserved a 
crumb from Joseph , whom they had sold; and if he 
pleased to give to one and not to another, he had a 
right so to do. Then we say, he had a right to be par- 
tial. We are travelling through a large and extensive 
wood, and many miles from any inhabitants ; we find 
ten persons who are lost ; they have been out of pro- 
visions for several days; and having fatigued them- 
selves, in wandering from hill to hill, from stream to 
stream, striving, to the utmost of their abilities, to find 
inhabitants ; having given up all hopes of ever seeing 
their homes again, and having, in their minds, bid their 
wives and children a long farewell, they are waiting 
for hunger to do its last work ! The moment we dis- 
cover ourselves to them, with large supplies of whole- 
some and rich provisions, every eye glistens with un- 
expected joy ; the current of life starts afresh in their 
veins, and they all advance to meet us on their en- 
feebled hands and knees, with eagerness to receive 
the staff of life ! We hasten to improve the opportu- 
nity of showing our sovereignty and goodness ; we feed 
five of them to the full, the other five, we neglect, 
They beg for the smallest crust, which we do not want 
but to no effect. Those whom we feed solicit us, eve- 
ry mouthful they eat, to bestow some on their fellow 
sufferers, but we refuse. We tell them, however, not 
to construe our conduct into partiality, but to leara 
our power and sovereignty by it. The five whom we 
have fed, we assist out of the wood and leave the rest 
to their wants ! 

We inquire still further, did the Almighty know, be- 
fore he made man, that he would become a sinner? 
Did he know that he would deserve an endless punish- 
ment? If the answer be in the negative, it supposes 
God to be wanting in knowledge, and that he created be- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



77 



ings at an infinite risk, as he did not know what would 
be the consequences. If the question be answered in 
the positive, it proves that an infinite cruelty existed in 
God ; for unless that was the case, he would never 
have created beings, who, he knew, would be infinite- 
ly the losers by their existence. 

Those who believe in the system which we are ex- 
amining, believe in the existence of the Devil, whose 
existence we have refuted in this work. We are will- 
ing, however, for the sake of the argument, to admit 
the existence of their God, and Devil likewise. But 
wish to inquire, which of them is, in reality, the worst 
being. God, when he created mankind, perfectly 
knew that some of them would suffer endless torment, 
for their sins ; he must, therefore, have intended them 
for that purpose. For, it is inconsistent to suppose, 
that the Almighty would create, without a purpose ; 
and his purpose could not be contrary to his knowledge. 
The matter then stands thus, God created millions of 
beings for endless misery, which they could not es- 
cape ; the Devil is desirous of having them miserable 
and does all in his power to effect it. Now, reader, 
judge between these two beings. Had this Devil been 
consulted, by the Almighty, when he laid the plan of 
man's final destiny, we cannot conceive him capable of 
inventing one more eligible to his infernal disposition, 
than this which we are now disputing. 

As reason will not consent to the plan of God, as 
described in the foregoing scheme, we will show that 
the scriptures equally oppose it, It is granted, that 
Jesus Christ died for mankind, as the scriptures de- 
clare; but not in the way, in which thousands have 
believed. But supposing he died instead of the sin- 
ner, in the way which we dispute, we still wish to 

prove, that he died for the whole of Adam's posteri- 
7* 



78 



TREATISE 



ty, as much as he did for any. If Isaiah did not be- 
lieve that that would be the case, we cannot recon- 
cile his words to his opinion, which we find in chap, 
liii. ver. 5, 6. " But he was wounded for our trans- 
gressions, he was brusied for our iniquities : the chas- 
tisement of our peace was upon him ; and with his 
stripes we are healed. All we, like sheep, have gone 
astray : We have turned every one to his own way ; 
and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." 
St. Paul must have been of this opinion, when he 
wrote to Timothy, or his words are not expressive of 
his belief. See 1 Tim. ii. 5, 6. " For there is one 
God, and one Mediator between God and men, the 
man Christ Jesus ; who gave himself a ransom for all 
to be testified in due time." 1 Epistle General of John 
ii. 1,2. " My little children, these things write I unto 
you, that ye sin not, and if any man sin, we have an 
advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous ; 
and he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours 
only, but also for the sins of the whole world." He- 
brews ii. 9. " But we see Jesus, who was made a lit- 
tle lower than the angels, for the sufferings of death, 
now crowned with glory and honor ; that he, by the 
grace of God, should taste death for every man." The 
above scriptures, with their connexions and correspond- 
ing passages, as fully prove that Christ died for all men, 
as any one thing can be proved from the bible. Now, 
as there is not, in all the scripture, a single hint to the 
reverse of these passages which we have introduced, it 
appears strange and unaccountable to me, that any 
person, who professes to believe the testimony of the 
bible, should ever have entertained the idea, that what 
these passages say, is false, and that which is not said, 
in contradiction to what is, is true ! 



ON ATONEMENT. 



79 



Look, ye readers, and submit to astonishment, at 
what has been believed in, as divine truth. An al- 
mighty, infinitely wise and good being, creates an in- 
numerable multitude of rational intelligences ; they re- 
bel against him, and raise an infinite dissatsifaction in 
his mind toward them ; this infinite dissatisfaction gets 
removed toward part of the offenders, by the sacrifice 
of innocence ! With the rest, God is still displeased ; 
yet, he is almighty and infinitely wise and employs his 
power and wisdom to make the works of his own hand 
as miserable as their natures will bear, for being just 
such creatures as he knew they would be, before he 
made them. But it is argued, that God's knowing what 
sort of creatures men would be did not influence them 
in the smallest degree, to be what they are. Let this 
argument be granted. But did not God know what 
would influence men to be what they are ? Answer, 
yes. Was it in his power to remove this influential 
cause ? If it were, why did he not do it, if it were like 
to displease him ? If it were not in his power to prevent 
the mischief, we wish to know whether it were in the 
creature's power to prevent it ? If it were not in the 
power of either of them to prevent the operation of 
things in the way in which they have, and do take place 
why is God's anger so warm against his poor impotent 
offspring? It seems an unhappy circumstance, for 
both Creator and creature. The Creator is not satisfied 
with his creatures ; his creatures find themselves intro- 
duced into an existence infinitely worse than none. 
We are born into this world of sorrow and trouble ; 
the first vibration of sense is want ; we endeavor to 
supply our wants, and to maintain our existence, which 
our Maker has bestowed upon us ; but as soon as we 
come to years of understandings are told of an infir 



80 



TREATISE 



nite debt which stands against us, which we owed thou- 
sands of years before we were born ; and that our Ma- 
ker is so angry with us , and has been ever since the 
debt was due, that he has prepared a furnace of end- 
less flames to torment us in, according to the due re- 
quirements of justice ! My father gives me his farm, 
/ and puts me in possession of it ; I am pleased, and 
prize it very highly. In consequence of my possession^ 
I paint to myself many pleasing prospects ; but, to my 
mortification, a person comes and presents me with a 
mortgage of my farm, for five times its value, the mort- 
gage running so as to hold the possessor to clear it ; I 
will leave the reader to say, whether my father was 
kind or unkind. Yet, the circumstance into which the 
Almighty has introduced millions of his creatures, J s 
infinitely worse according to the doctrine which we are 
examining. It is argued, with much assurance, that 
God has a just right to do with his creatures as he 
pleases, because he has it in his power so to do ; and 
that he never does any thing, because it is right ; but 
what he does, is right, because he does it. 

If the above statement be just, moral holiness con- 
sists in the power of action, and not in the disposi- 
tion that designs the action. If so, our argument in 
favor of sin's existing only in the design of the actor, 
and not in the action, is groundless ; and we are driv- 
en to say, that unholiness, or sin, is the want of pow- 
er to perform an action ; and holiness consists in hav 
ing the power to do it. One man designs to murdei 
another for his money, he makes the attempt, and 
fails ; his sin consisted in not having power to execute 
his design ; but, in the design, there is no evil. On 
the other hand, he makes the attempt, and succeeds ; 
here is no evil at all, because he had power to do it. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



81 



On this principle, every thing that can be done, is 
moral holiness ; and every thing that cannot be done, 
is sin, or moral evil. 

Here we are presented with a picture the most to be 
dreaded, of any thing which the imagination of man is 
capable of inventing. Power moving on in front, ex- 
hibiting tyrannic majesty in every action ; and meagre 
justice in the rear, obsequiously pronouncing all 
right ! If these things be so, our senses are nothing 
but mediums of deception ; and all our experience has 
served us no other purpose than to make us more igncn 
rant. Who is there in the world, possessing common 
sense, that does not dread, and revolt from power, in 
every instance, where they see it connected with an evil 
disposition? Are we right, in wishing our ene- 
mies weak? We are, and that because their 
strength being diected by their wicked designs, gives 
us fear. 

But, for the sake of the argument, still further, let it 
be granted, that God being supreme, had a right to 
do, because he had the power. And he creates mil- 
lions of beings, whom he intends for endless torments, 
and puts his whole design into execution ; and this is 
called supreme goodness. Now we wish to know 
how a supreme evil could be described? All will 
grant, that evil is in opposition to good ; then an op- 
posite description would be just. To create, with an 
intention to make eternally happy, and to put that de- 
sign into execution, would be supreme evil ? But, ac- 
cording to the doctrine which we are examining God 
contains these two characters in himself, having creat- 
ed some for one purpose, and some for the other. It 
will be of no advantage to the reader to have the ab- 
surdity of the above proposition any more exposed^ 



82 



TREATISE 



than enough to have it rejected. We never heard or 
read any argument to prove the propriety of the dis- 
puted proposition. It is a begged proposition, and 
stands without the least shadow of evidence from scrip- 
ture or reason ; but it requires no great ingenuity to 
see what the chimera was invented for ; without it, 
the whole plan and scheme of atonement, which we 
are now examining, would fall, for want of founda- 
tion. 

There are some of Paul's writings to the Romans, 
which have been used by divines, to prove the par- 
tial plan of salvation true, of which, we think it will 
be proper to take notice, in this place. Romans ix. 
21 , 22, has been made great use of, in order to prove, 
that God made some men vessels of eternal dishonor, 
and other vessels of eternal glory. The words read 
as follows : u Hath not the potter power over the clay, 
of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and 
another unto dishonor? What if God, willing to 
show his wrath, and to make his power known, endur- 
ed with much long suffering the vessels of wrath fitted 
to destruction." " Again, Rom. xi 7th &c. What then ? 
Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh ; for but 
the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded 
(according as it is written, God hath given them the spirit 
of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that 
they should not hear) unto this day. And David 
saith, let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and 
a stumbling block, and a recompense unto them ; let 
their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and 
bow down their back alway." 

On these passages, and others like them, is built 
the doctrine of limited salvation, by Jesus Christ, ac- 
cording to the fore-knowledge and predestination of 



ON ATONEMENT. 



83 



the Almighty. It is argued, that those who are here 
called the elect, are those for whom Christ died, and 
those alone who will finally obtain salvation by him. 
But why any person should make such a mistake, in 
reading this chapter, we are at a loss. The salvation 
of the elect is not argued, in this chapter ; but the 
certainty of the salvation of those who were blinded, 
and the propriety of believing it, occupies the greatest 
part of it. Observe the words next to those we have 
quoted above, verse 11, &c. " I say then, have they 
stumbled, that they should fall ? God forbid : but 
rather through their fall salvation is come unto the 
Gentiles, to provoke them unto jealousy. Now, if the 
fall of them be the riches of the world, and the di- 
minishing of them, the riches of the Gentiles, how 
much more their fulness?" Again, verse 15th 7 
r< For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of 
the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but 
life from the dead? " Again, in his argument to the 
Romans, he endeavors to show them, by the similitude 
of the branches of olive trees, that they ought to be- 
lieve that those blinded ones, though broken off 
through unbelief, would be graffed in again. See 
verse 24, " For, if thou wert cut out of the olive tree 
which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to 
nature, into a good olive tree ; how much more shall 
these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into 
their own olive tree?" The apostle seems desirous 
to instruct the Roman church, and argues the point 
fervently ; see verses 25, 26. a For I would not 
brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, 
(lest ye should be wise in your own conceits J that 
blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the ful- 
ness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel 



$4 



TREATISE 



shall be saved ; as it is written, there shall come out 
of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodli- 
ness from Jacob." Compare the last verse which we 
have quoted, with Levit. xxvi. 44, 45. " And yet for 
all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, 
I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor 
them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my cove- 
nant with them : for I am the Lord their God. But I 
will for their sakes remember the covenant of their 
ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of 
Egypt, in the sight of the heathen that I might be their 
God : I am the Lord." And Isaiah xiv. 25. " In 
the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and 
shall glory" Many like passages might be quoted, 
from various parts of the scripture; but, perhaps, the 
above will suffice for this particular purpose. More, 
of the like nature, will be noticed in the sequel of this 
work. 

The scriptures have been as much violated, to main- 
tain the doctrine which we are examining as good rea- 
son is by supposing God to be so infinitely partial, as 
he must be, in the eye of reason, in order to be what 
the doctrine represents him. 

We shall now invite the attention of the reader to 
another system of atonement, which was undoubtedly 
formed, with a view to shun the absurdities in the 
former, and to get rid of some of the consequences that 
were naturally deducible from that idea of the suffer- 
ings of Christ. This system supposes, that the atone- 
ment by Christ was not intended for the salvation of any 
part of the human race ; that its main end , and sole ob- 
ject, was the glory of the Supreme Being, as manifested 
in his holy and righteous law. In support of this plan, it 
is argued, that it is inconsistent, for infinite wisdom and 



ON ATONEMENT. 



85 



goodness to prefer an inferior object to a superior one ; 
that all creation, when compared with the Creator, 
sinks into nothing, bearing no possible proportion to 
the infinite Jehovah ; of course, that God always has 
his own glory in view, as his supreme object, in all he 
does. 

This plan agrees with the former, in supposing sin 
to be of infinite magnitude, and deserving of endless 
punishment ; that, as the law of God is infinite, like 
himself, finite man is infinitely to blame for not fulfill- 
ing all its requirements ; and that the penalty of the law 
is endless misery, which misery Christ sustained ; not 
with a view of acquitting the sinner, nor in room and 
stead of the transgressor, as is supposed in the other 
plan ; but for the honor of divine justice, and the glo- 
ry of his Father. It is further argued, that by Christ's 
suffering the penalty of the law, justice is as fully satis- 
fied, as if all mankind had been made miserable for 
an eternity. And this being the case, it is now just 
and right for God to acquit as many of the sinful race 
of Adam, as is consistent with his grand object, which 
is himself ; yet by no means rendering it unjust for 
God to punish, to all eternity, as many as is neces- 
sary, in order for the satisfying of the same grand 
object. 

We first inquire into the propriety of the argument 
on which this plan of atonement seems to be founded - 
which is, that God always acts for his own infinite and 
incomprehensible glory ; never stooping so low, as to 
act with an intention for the good of his creatures. 

1st. We ask, is God as infinitely glorious as he can 
be, or not ? If it be answered, that he is ; then, if his 
object in all he does, is to augment his own glory, he 
never has, nor will he ever accomplish his intention. 
8 



86 



TREATISF 



If it be argued, that it is not to augment his own glory, 
but to secure it and maintain it in its proper splendor, 
it argues it to be of a perishable nature, and that it 
would decay, were it not for the continual vigilance of 
the Almighty, in preserving it. If it be argued, that 
neither of these objects is right, but that it is the mani- 
festation of his glory to intelligent beings, which is the 
grand design or object of God, in all his acts, without 
any reference to the effect which this manifestation has 
on those to whom it is made, we say, the object has 
now dwindled into annihilation ; there is not the small- 
est imaginable atom of it left. To suppose, that any 
rational being can wish, or desire, to accomplish any 
piece of labor, without having any reference to the 
consequences, is too glaringly absurd, to need refuta- 
tion. Now the nature of the proposition, which we are 
examining, confines the motive of Deity within himself, 
and himself from his creation. In order therefore, to 
look at the Almighty as he is by this doctrine represent- 
ed, we must look at him as destitute of a creation, 
and view him abstractly from all his creatures. But 
may we ask, what title to give that being of whom we 
speak ? The name Jehovah, truly has reference to his 
self-existence and to his character as the giver of exist- 
ence, also. The name God, implies a being who is 
worshipped. Lord, signifies a possessor. I am that 
I am, has reference to an unchangeable being, but does 
not determine a being of goodness. I ask, again, what 
do we know of an Almighty, only by his works ? If his 
existence can ever be determined, by any other means, 
we are ignorant of the way. What do we know, but 
by our senses ? Have we any sense of good, or evil, 
that does not concern created beings ? We may say, 
if we please, that God acts for his own essential good, 



ON ATONEMENT. 



87 



abstractly from his creation ; but what do we mean by 
it ? An action, for the good of any being, presupposes 
that being in want ; and if in want, then not infinitely 
happy. If God be not infinitely happy, he never can be. 
We inquire further, by what data, can we determine 
that God is a good being ? Can we determine it by 
any other criterion, than by the effects of what he 
does, as it concerns his creatures? The truth un- 
doubtedly is, that just as far as we can look into cre- 
ation, providence and redemption and see the harmo- 
ny and beauty of them, and see that all were calcula- 
ted for the good of created intelligences, whom these 
things concern, we are satisfied, that he, who conducts 
the whole, is a good being. And if we say he is good, 
without this understanding, we acknowledge a propo- 
sition, for which we are unable to offer the smallest 
reason. Again, is it not wrong to make a separation 
where the Almighty does not? Is he not perfectly join- 
ed to his creation ? 13 Do we not live, move, and have 
our being in God ? Were we not created of his ful- 
ness? Had Deity any thing of which to create beings 
but his own eternal nature ? We know it has been 
said, that God created all things out of nothing, &c, ; 
but such an idea never will be imbibed by us, until 
we can form, in imagination at least, a notion, of how 
much nothing it takes to make the least imaginable 
something. If all things were created of the infinite 
Jehovah, as great a part of his creation as we take 
from him, so great a proportion we take from his ful- 
ness. God never could be more than infinite, in his 
fulness ; then, to take the smallest creature from him, 
which he created of that infinite fulness, you have left 
something less than infinity. Now if it be argued, 
that God acts for the good of himself, considering his 



88 



TREATISE 



creatures to belong to his fulness, we are perfectly 
agreed : But, to say, that the Almighty has, or ever 
could have a motive, in action, that did not embrace 
every consequence that could arise from what he did, 
would be limiting his- omnisciency ; or, to say, that he 
did not intend good, to all whom his acts concern, would 
be limiting his goodness, and an impeachment on his 
justice. 

We have before, in this work, contended, that all 
the attributes, which we ascribe to God, we call good, 
on account of the advantages which we derive from 
such principles. We are told of a God who acts for 
his own benefit, abstractly from his creation ; and that, 
in millions of cases, he finds it most for his glory to 
make his rational, hoping, wanting creatures endlessly 
miserable ; and this is called goodness. We are like- 
wise told of a devil, who acts for his own gratifica- 
tion, and who delights in making God's creatures 
miserable; and this is called badness. But, for our 
part, according to such statements, as the difference 
between goodness and badness, is so small we can 
hardly distinguish it. It is profane, in our opinion, 
to attribute a disposition to the Almighty, which we 
can justly condemn in ourselves. A man, who should 
act from such a selfish principle as is attributed to 
God, would render himself wholly unworthy of the 
protection of common law. And shall we thus rep- 
resent our kind and merciful Father, from whom ten 
thousand streams of goodness continually flow to his 
wanting and needy creatures ? No ; let every vibra- 
tion of sense within us acknowledge his bountiful 
hand, which is never closed. 

We have already labored, in this work, to show, 
that sin is finite, and not committed against an infi- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



89 



nite law. We shall, however, now call into examina- 
tion a subject something like it, which is, that of pen- 
alty ; as it is contended, that the penalty of God's law 
is endless punishment, &c. 

We first inquire, why does a legislature affix pen- 
alties to laws which it makes ? Answer, the first rea- 
son is, the strength and security of government. 
2d. That the punishment may serve to reclaim the 
delinquent. 3d. That the punishment of a criminal 
may serve to deter others from the commission of 
like crimes. 4th. In many cases, to keep the delin- 
quent, by confinement or death, from doing any more 
mischief. 

Now let us look into the government of an Almigh- 
ty Being, and see how the matter of penalty will ope- 
rate there. Observe the penalty is endless misery. 
We ask is this necessary, to secure the government of 
an Almighty Being ? Would his government be in 
danger, if this penalty were not enacted to his law ? 
Supposing a legislature of men had the power in their 
hands, of causing all the community, on whom its 
laws were binding, to love their laws, in every re- 
quirement, and with vigilance to attend to the faithful 
discharge of their duties in all things, would it be 
necessary for them to enact penalties to their laws ? 
Allowing the legislature to have such powers, who, in 
the world, would say, it is not best to exercise it ; 
that it is better to have penal laws, and let the people 
have their wicked obdurate hearts, so that now and 
then we may have a poor criminal to execute ? We 
can hardly believe, that any will contend, that penalty 
is necessary in the law of God, in order to secure 
his government. Is there any scruple respecting God's 
power to turn the hearts of his creatures as he pleases ? 
8* 



90 



TREATISE 



If there be not, then there is no need of a penalty 
in his law, in order for the security of his govern- 
ment. 

2d. Is this penalty necessary, in order to reclaim 
the delinquent ? Answer, that is impossible. The 
penalty being endless punishment, it can have no ob- 
ject in reclaiming the punished. The execution of 
such a penalty on any of God's creatures, would prove 
the contractedness of his goodness, as no possible 
good could be communicated to a victim of such pun- 
ishment. Divine truths says, God is good unto all, 
and his tender mercies are over all his works. To 
say, God is good to a creature of his, whom he irre- 
vocably dooms to endless torments, is a violation of 
our senses ; and no person, in a moment of sobriety, 
will believe it. ■ It is then evident, that such a penal- 
ty would not be necessary to reclaim the sinner. 

3d. Is it necessary to inflict such a penalty on the 
transgressor, in order to deter others from the com- 
mission .<sK sin? Answer, no; for, according to the 
doctrine fvhich we are examining, the first transgres- 
sion committed, involved the whole human race in 
the delinquency ; and an execution of such a penalty, 
would be the endless misery of the whole family of 
man ; there would not have been one left to be deter- 
red from sinning, or even to tell the news ! 

4th. Is such a penalty necessary in order to keep 
the sinner from sinning any more ? So far from that, 
this penalty would fix the delinquents in a situation, 
in which they could do nothing but sin, to an endless 
eternity. No moral being can be miserable as suffer* 
%ng conscious guilt, without sin ; therefore, in order 
for endless misery to be inflicted, endless transgres- 
sion is necessary. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



91 



Look, kind reader, and see what an absurdity lies 
here. Because a being has sinned once, the law 
which he violated requires that he should continue in 
transgression ! Well, he complies ; will the law justi- 
fy him ? But, says the reader, I do not understand 
you. Why, the matter is plain ; if a moral being 
cannot be miserable, without sin, he must continue in 
sin, in order to be miserable. Then, if God's law re- 
quires endless misery, it requires endless transgression! 
But, it is argued, that a law cannot exist without a 
penalty. This, undoubtedly is an error. The larg- 
est signification of the word law, is governing pow- 
er. See Rom. vii. 23. "But I see another law in 
my members, warring against the law of my mind, 
and bringing me into captivity unto the law of sin 
which is in my members." This law of sin in the 
members, which brings the man into captivity, is un- 
doubtedly the power of the flesh, which lusteth against 
the spirit, that we cannot do the things we would. 
Now, we ask, is there any penalty to this law ? Does 
this law administer any condemnation to those who 
do not obey it ? Most surely it does not. Then pass 
to the eighth chapter and third verse ; " For the law 
of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free 
from the law of sin and death." This lata is undoubt- 
edly the governing power of the new man, which 
overcomes the carnal mind, and delivers the soul from 
the bondage of sin. We ask, again, is there any 
penalty to this law ? Is there a dispensation of con- 
demnation administered by this law of life ? Truth 
says, the wages of sin is death. Does this death flow 
from the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus ? 
Surely not. " To be carnally minded is death." If 
carnal mindedness be that death, which is the wages 



92 



TREATISE 



of sin, surely it does not flow from the spirit of life 
" To be spiritually minded is life and peace." 

God's moral law is like himself, love; " God is love, 
and he who loveth, dwelleth in God, and God in him." 

It requires all moral beings to love God and each 
other ; and the reason why it commands this, is, it is 
love itself True, that soul is miserable that does not 
love God, and the reasons are, love is the life and 
happiness of the soul, and hatred is its death and 
misery. 

Although we think we have given unanswerable rea- 
sons , why we do not admit such a penalty as we have 
examined, we will for the sake of the argument still 
further allow it, and inquire into Christ's suffering it. 

To say, that Christ has suffered such a penalty is a 
contradiction in terms, because endless duration has not 
yet, expired. To say, that this penalty ever will be 
suffered, by Christ, or any other being, is another con- 
tradiction in words ; for an endless duration will never 
expire. Then to say, that such a penalty has been, or 
ever will be suffered, is erroneous. 

If it be argued that Christ was an infinite person, 
and, therefore, could suffer an endless punishment, in 
a few moments ; we answer, it is not shunning the 
contradiction. If the position be moved, and the ar- 
gument is, that he being infinite, could suffer as much, 
in a few moments, as all mankind would to an end- 
less duration ; we ask, are there more infinite beings 
than one ? All answer, no. We ask again, is it pos- 
sible for that infinite being to suffer ? Even from our 
opponent, the answer will be, that an infinite being did 
not suffer ; but that it was the finite nature which suf- 
fered, and was raised from the dead, by the infinite ; 
that it was the human nature which was made a sin of- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



93 



fering ; and that the divine nature gave victory t© the 
human, by raising it into an immortal life. Well then, 
the sufferings were finite, and could by no means an- 
swer the requirements of an infinite penalty. 

The particular difference, between this plan and 
the former, is in the intentions of the sufferings of 
Christ. The former supposes, that Christ suffered, 
in room and stead of the sinner, so as to acquit all 
those from condemnation, for whom he died : This ar- 
gues, that the intention of the sufferings of Christ was 
not the salvation of sinners ; but, as we have before 
observed, the glory of the Supreme Being. But, that 
by the sufferings of Christ, the law is perfectly magni- 
fied, and made honorable ; and that it is just, for God 
to acquit as many of the sinful race of Adam, as is 
consistent with his glory ; but does not render it un- 
just, for him to punish, endlessly, as many as is neces- 
sary for the same grand object. 

Now, admitting the penalty of the law to be endless, 
and that Christ suffered it in full, the law cannot now 
require the destruction of the offender ; how then can 
we reasonably argue, that it is for the glory of God to 
punish, when justice does not require it ? If justice 
do require it now, of any, it does of all If it be ar- 
gued, that divine justice does not require the endless 
happiness or misery of man, we say, it is not a law 
which concerns mankind ; and if we say, God's will, 
in the misery of mankind, extends farther than the 
requirements of his justice, it is setting the Almigh- 
ty against himself. Again, admitting such provisions 
to be made, as render it consistent with justice, that 
all sinners should be emancipated from death and 
misery, does eternal love and mercy require less ? 

Supposing five hundred Americans are in slavery 



94 



TREATISE 



at Algiers : Our Consul demands the price of their re- 
demption, per man ; he is answered, the price of ©ne 
is the price of the whole; and the price of the whole 
is the price of one ; the sum is five hundred dollars. 
This, the Dey says, is not a consideration for the slaves, 
but to show America, or the United states, his power, 
and the dignity of his government. Our consul obtains 
the money and pays it. Now, reader, do you think 
he would confine the benefits of this ransom-money, to 
a small part of those unfortunate Americans ; and out 
of five hundred, send but fifty home to their wives, 
children, country and friends ; and tell the remaining 
four hundred and fifty, that the money was his own, 
and he had a right to extend, or not extend the bene- 
fits of it, as he pleased ; and that it was his pleasure 
that they should all wear out a miserable life in slavery, 
where they might dream of liberty, but never enjoy it ? 
The smallest degree of humanity would argue better 
things. 

We have now examined the foundation of this plan 
of atonement, and it has removed out of our sight ; we 
have sought carefully after the penalty of the law, and 
cannot find it ; we have sought for the satisfaction of 
such penal requirements, admitting they did exist, and 
find them not ; we have admitted, for the sake of the 
query, that such satisfaction did take place, and we 
have sought for the consequences which are argued^ 
and find them inconsistent with such promises. 

Taking our leave of this plan of atonement, we shall 
introduce a third one, from which we shall also dissent, 
and give our reasons for so -doing. The plan agrees 
with the former, in respect to the law, its penalty and 
of the personage of him who makes the atonement but 
differs, in respect to the intentions of God, in the atone- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



95 



ment. As far as the first transgression concerned man- 
kind, it is believed that the atonement by Christ is ful- 
ly efficacious ; and that no man will, or can be misera- 
ble forever, on account of what is called original siyi. 
And that, by virtue of the sufferings of Christ, Adam 
and all his posterity were immediately placed in a state 
of trial, or probation, after the fall, such as Adam was 
in, before, but with this difference, viz. man now 
knows good and evil, and is possessed of strong appe- 
tites to sin ; but has also, a portion of the divine Spirit, 
which is given to every man, for his profit, to assist 
him in opposing those appetites, and subduing them. 

Those who believe in this plan, believe that it was 
in the power of Adam, as a moral agent, to have stood 
in a state of holiness and innocency ; and that it is now 
in the power of every man, as a moral agent, to obtain 
the paradise which Adam lost. They do not admit, 
that Christ died for our actual transgressions, after we 
come to years of discretion ; but of these we must re- 
pent, and beg for mercy, and God will forgive, on our 
humble and sincere application. The sum of this plan 
of atonement, made salvation possible unto all men 
but certain unto none. It argues, that it is the will 
of God, that all men should be saved, and come unto 
the knowledge of the truth ; that all should repent of 
their sins, and receive the Redeemer on the reasonable 
terms upon which he is offered to us. 

Those who believe in this plan, believe it possible 
for men to neglect those privileges, slight those merci- 
ful offers, and turn a deaf ear to all the warnings of 
the Spirit, until the day of their probation is ended, 
whereby all that the Saviour has done, is made of no 
effect unto them. And that thousands will be thus 
neglectful, and be miserable as long as God exists ; 



96 



TREATISE 



not, however, for the sin which Adam committed, but 
for their own personal transgressions. 

Before we put the foregoing system of atonement 
under examination, we will take notice of the charac- 
ter of the Mediator, as believed in, by all those who 
hold to the several systems of which we have taken 
notice, as we have not examined that particular, in our 
inquiries on the other systems preceding the one under 
consideration. They all contend, that the Mediator is 
really God ; that the Godhead consists ot three dis- 
tinct persons viz. Father, Son and Holy Ghost ; that 
these distinct persons are equal in power and glory, 
and eternally and essentially one. 

The reader will observe our usual mode of reasoning, 
which is to admit, a s truth, what we wish to oppose ; 
and to oppose it, with the consequence which necessa- 
rily follows. For the sake of argument, then, we ad- 
mit the foregoing statement concerning Christ to be 
just ; and then we contend, that if he be the Son of 
God, he is the son of himself, and is his own father ; 
that he is no more the Son of God, than God is his 
son ! To say, of two persons, exactly of the same age, 
that one of them is a real son of the other, is to con- 
found good sense. If Jesus Christ were really God, it 
must be argued, that God really died ! Again, if the 
Godhead consists of three distinct persons, and each 
of those persons be infinite, the whole Godhead 
amounts to the amazing sum of infinity, multiplied by 
three ! If it is said, that neither of these three persons 
alone is infinite, we say, the three together, with the 
addition of a million more such, would not make an 
infinite being. But supposing we get over all those 
absurdities, and suppose that these three distinct per- 
sons formed the grand council in heaven, on the sal- 
vation of man, after the first transgression. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



97 



In this council, and on so momentous an occasion, 
the first person adddresses the other two, saying, the 
colony which we have just planted on our new made 
earth, has rebelled, and you know the penalty, which is 
endless misery, must be immediately executed on the 
two delinquents, unless a dispensation can be devised 
more favorable to the offenders, and equally satisfactory 
to justice. As the attribute of justice spake in the first 
person, that of mercy speaks, in the second, and pro- 
poses a pardon. Justice opposes, and contends that 
his honor depends on the penalty's being put in exe- 
cution. Mercy again replies, the second person in the 
Godhead shall suffer the penalty due to sin, and jus- 
tice shall grant man a second probation, in which he 
may secure the life, which he, by rebellion, lost. 
That reasonable conditions should be proposed, and 
the third person should make them known to man, and 
give him proper directions how to fulfil them ; and if 
man faithfully attend to these conditions, he secures his 
happiness ; if not, mercy makes no more request in fa- 
vor of the offender. To this all agree ; and it is regis- 
tered accordingly. 

It seems according to this plan, that man utterly 
failed, on the first trial, but now, has the second op- 
portunity. We would ask, is there any more certain- 
ty of his succeeding now, than there was before ? Is 
it certain, according to this plan, that any of Adam's 
posterity will obtain salvation ? Is it not in the power 
of all men to neglect those conditions? If it be not 
it destroys the nature of conditions, and of probation; 
if it be, then it is entirely uncertain, whether an indi 
vidual soul will ever be saved by the gospel plan. 

We have before shown it erroneous to suppose, 
that any finite being could suffer an infinite punish- 
9 



98 



TREATISE 



merit, in any period of time ; and we think it is also 
granted, that an infinite being cannot suffer. But, 
admitting the system of atonement to stand on the 
ground contended for, it was a matter of utter uncer- 
tainty, whether it would, in any instance, prove effica- 
cious, as it respected the salvation of man. 

A rich parent gives a large portion to his son, ac- \ 
companied with good advice ; the son turns prodigal, 
spends all, and gets into prison for debt. The father 
still loves the son, pays his debts, lets him out of pris- 
on, sets him atj liberty, and gives him a thousand 
pounds more, which is all he ever can give him, and 
tells him to be more prudent. The prodigal, no 
sooner than he finds himself thus liberated, and in pos- 
session of a handsome property, goes into the same 
error, which brought him to ruin before, and finally 
meets the same consequences. The father has no 
more to give, and the son becomes a vagabond. We 
ask, did the parent act the part of wisdom, any more 
than the son did ? If he had acted wisely, would he 
not have said to him, Son I gave you much at the 
first ; I gave you good advice ; I told you, that indus- 
try and prudence alone would secure you from want ; 
I told you, though your property were large, unless 
you put your money to interest, or into trade, it must 
dwindle ; that if you threw away your time, in vain 
and foolish prodigality, the end would be what you 
have already experienced? And although I hoped 
better things of you, than a total neglect of my ad- 
monitions, yet, I feared; and, for your good, have 
reserved one thousand pounds of what I intended to 
give you, which, had you been economical, I should, 
by this time, have committed to your care. But, as 
you have conducted so foolishly, I must, for your 



ON ATONEMENT 



99 



benefit, keep the remainder of your portion, until 
you prove yourself a convert, from prodigality to econ- 
omy. 

If the Almighty were ignorant, at first, when he put 
man in possession of privileges which he afterwards 
abused, it astonishes me that he should risk the last 
favor which he had to bestow, on principles which he 
had just seen fail. It will undoubtedly be acknow- 
ledged, by all, that Jehovah knew, as perfectly before 
transgression as afterward, what man would do, and 
how he would dispose of the advantages which he had 
bestowed on him. Then, we ask, if God knew how 
man would abuse those privileges, and knew he would 
be eternally miserable, in consequence, was it an act 
of kindness, in God, to grant man such privileges? 
We ask, again, was* it possible for that to fail, which 
the Almighty perfectly knew would take place ? The 
answer will be, no. Then, when we have consolidat- 
ed the whole down to its real self, all the privilege 
which God gave to those whom he knew would ren- 
der themselves objects of his displeasure, was a privi- 
lege of incurring to themselves endless misery ; we say 
more, he insured it to them himself, by putting that 
into their hands, by which he knew it would be ejp 
fected. 

I give my child a loaded pistol, which I tell him to 
discharge at a serpent, on his way where I have order- 
ed him. I know perfectly well, when I give him the 
pistol, that he will carelessly blow his own brains out 
with its contents, and the serpent will go unhurt; 
the child's end happens, accordingly. I leave the 
reader to judge, whether I am the murderer of my 
child ; my conscience would inform me. 

The Mediator suffered the penalty of the law, to 



100 



TREATISE 



reinstate man in a state of probation; God made a 
revelation to mankind, for their instruction ; he in- 
spired the ancient prophets, to speak of the things of 
his kingdom ; sent his holy Spirit into the world, to 
lead and guide man into all truth ; and all this is done, 
from the pure benevolence of God towards a sinful 
world, for its everlasting welfare, but all upon uncer- 
tainties ! After all, man has it in his power to frus- 
trate the whole plan of grace, and render it abor- 
tive ! 

On the other hand, it was possible for every son and 
daughter of Adam to accept of Christ, on the very easy 
terms of gospel obedience, and thereby to have secur- 
ed the heavenly kingdom. This being granted, who 
knows they will not do it ? Things that are possible, 
may be done; and who can say, for certainty, that 
those things which are possible, will not be effected ? 
If it be an absolute certainty, that any will finally fail 
of gaining the prize, it is also an absolute certainty, 
that they have no possible opportunity for it : If 
there be an opportunity, and the prize be attainable 
by all, there is at least some room for hope ; and were 
it the real christian hope, it would be like an anchor 
to the soul, both sure and steadfast; but being found- 
ed in the creature, and not in God, it is wavering 
and doubtful. 

On this system, it must be absurd to argue the cer- 
tainty of the endless misery of any of the family of 
man, as the salvation of the whole is possible. God, 
out of love to his creatures, made it possible for them 
all to obtain salvation ; indeed, it is his will, that all 
should be saved from their sins ; it is, also, the will of 
Christ, and of the Holy Spirit ; it is the will of all holy 
beings in heaven, and of the saints on earth ; prayers 



ON ATONEMENT. 



101 



are daily offered up, from the altar of sacrifice, for its 
accomplishment : And if it be not done, the whole 
Godhead will be disappointed ; mourning, instead of 
rejoicing, will be the employment of holy angels, and 
the saints will be stung with the keenest sensations of 
griex. 

No one will dare to say he believes God can be 
disappointed, in any of his purposes ; therefore, those 
who believe in the system last examined, must be dis- 
satisfied with it, if their eyes should ever be opened to 
see its consequences. 

Having examined those several systems of atone- 
ment, in as concise a method as was convenient, and 
having given my principal reasons for not adopting 
either, I now beg the attention of the reader to my se- 
cond inquiry, viz. 

The necessity of Atonement, and where satisfaction 
must be made. 

I have, already, entered my protest, against the ne- 
cessity of atonement, on the principles upon which 
christians have generally believed it, by showing the 
finite nature of sin, and the error of supposing that the 
law of God required the endless misery of mankind, as 
a penal requisition. 

Atonement signifies reconciliation, or satisfaction, 
which is the same. It is a being unreconciled to truth 
and justice, which needs reconciliation; and it is a 
dissatisfied being which needs satisfaction. There- 
fore, I raise my inquiry on the question, Is God the 
unreconciled or dissatisfied party, or is it man? 

For our assistance on this question, let us turn our 
attention to God's dealings with Adam on the day of 



102 



TREATISE 



transgression, and the conduct of Adam, the trans- 
gressor. After Adam had eaten of the forbidden fruit, 
his eyes opened to the knowledge of good and evil, 
and he found himself naked, and endeavored to hide 
himself from God, which he certainly would not have 
done, had he considered his Maker his friend. Sin 
produced two errors in the mind of Adam, which have 
been very incident to mankind ever since ; the first 
was, he believed God to be his enemy, in consequence 
of disobedience ; and, secondly, that he could recon- 
cile his Maker, by works of his own. The first of 
these errors we discover, from Adam's endeavoring to 
hide from God ; and the second is seen in his endea- 
voring to clothe himself with the works of his own 
hands. It is plain, that a material change had taken 
place in Adam ; but can we prove, that any alteration 
happened in God ? It is very evident, that Adam was 
unreconciled to God ; but it is equally as evident, that 
God was not unreconciled to him. God's calling 
Adam, in the cool of the day, and asking him where 
he was ; clothing hirn with a garment of skins, and 
promising that the seed of the woman should bruise 
the serpent's head, are beautiful representations of 
the parental love and fatherly care of the Creator. It 
ought to be observed, that God pronounced no curse 
on Adam, but on the serpent. If the Almighty had 
been unreconciled or dissatisfied with his creature man 
in room of promising him a final victory over the ser- 
pent, the curse would undoubtedly have fallen on the 
object of his displeasure. 

To say, that God loved man any less, after transgres- 
sion, than before, denies his ^changeability ; but, to 
say, that man was wanting in love to God, places him 
in his real character. As God was not the unrecon- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



103 



ciled party, no atonement was necessary for his recon- 
ciliation. Where there is dissatisfaction it presuppo- 
ses an injured party ; and can it be hard to determine 
which was injured by sin, the Creator or the sinner? 
If God were unreconciled to man, the atonement was 
necessary, to renew his love to his creature ; but if 
man was the unreconciled the atonement was necessa- 
ry, to renew his love to his Creator. The matter is 
now stated so plainly, that no person, who can read, 
can mistake. 

We shall now endeavor to prove, from scripture, 
that the atonement by Christ was the effect, and not 
the cause of God's love to man. See St. John iii. 
16. " For God so loved the world, that he gave his 
only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on him 
might not perish, but have everlasting life." Accor- 
ding to this passage, nothing is more plain in scripture 
than the idea that what Christ did for sinners, was a 
consequence of God's love to them. Again, verse 17. 
" for God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the 
world, but that the world through him might be saved. 
This passage says thy God did not send his Son into 
the world to condemn the world ; but, according to the 
general idea of atonement, Christ stood as the proxy 
of man, and the world was tried in him, and condemn- 
ed in him, and in him suffered the penalty of the law 
which man had transgressed. It is also said, in the 
text, that Christ was sent, that the world through him 
might be saved ; which if true, goes to prove, that the 
Father's object, in Christ's coming into the world, was 
the salvation of sinners, and not for the removeing of 
any dissatisfaction in himself towards them. Again, 
see Rom. v. 8. "But God commendeth his love to- 
wards us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ 



104 



TREATISE 



died for us." As the death of Christ is here spoken 
of as a commendation of God's love to us, it ought to 
be considered as an effect and not the cause of that 
love. Again, 1 epistle of John, i v., 9. " In this was 
manifested the love of God towards us, because that 
God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that 
we might live through him." If Christ's coming into 
the world so as a manifestation of God's love to us, this 
love must have existed before he came, and his coming 
was an effect produced by it. Verse 10. " Herein is 
love, not that we loved God but that he loved us, and 
sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 
Verse 19. " We love him because he first loved 
us." 

From those passages, and many more which might 
be quoted, to the same effect, it is easy to learn, that 
what the Mediator did for sinners, was the consequence, 
and not the cause of God's love to us. God being in- 
finite in all his glorious attributes, he can by no means 
love, at one time, and hate the same object at another* 
His divine omnisciency comprehended all the events 
of time and eternity ; therefore, nothing could take 
place, to remove his love from an object on which it 
was placed. The Almighty had no occasion to dislike 
Adam, after transgression, any more than he had even 
before he made him ; for, he knew as well then, that 
he would sin, as he did after it was actually done. 
The reason that we mortals love an object, at one time, 
and dislike it, at another, is the weakness of our un- 
derstandings ; we have not always the same view of 
the same object. We may slight an object of great 
value, its excellences being out of our sight ; and we 
may set our affections on one of no value, by errone- 
ously attaching a value to it which it does not possess. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



105 



But the Infinitely Wise is subject to no mistakes ; he 
comprehends the whole futurition of all moral beings, 
and loves them as his own offspring, with a love con- 
sistent with his immutable existence. Therefore, it is 
evident, that God was not the unreconciled, and, of 
course, did not require an atonement to reconcile him- 
self to his creatures. 

Let us now turn on the other side, and see if man 
oe not unreconciled to God ; and if it would not be 
more reasonable, to reconcile man to his Maker, than 
to reconcile God to the sinner. See Psalm xiv. 2, 3. 
" The Lord looked down from heaven upon the chil- 
dren of men to see if there were any that did under- 
stand, and seek God. They are all gone aside ? they 
are altogether become filthy : there is none that doeth 
good, no not one." 

The apostle Paul, in the third chapter of Romans, 
giving a general description of mankind, introduces it 
with the passage from Psalms, which we have just 
quoted, and continues it by an assemblage of various 
passages, see verse 13, &c. " Their throat is an open 
sepulchere ; with their tongues, they have used deceit ; 
the poison of asps is under their lips ; whose mouth is 
full of cursing and bitterness ; their feet are swift to 
shed blood ; destruction and misery are in their ways, 
and the way of peace they have not known ; there is 
no fear of God before their eyes." It is very evident 
that the apostle meant to exclude none from this des- 
cription, as the reader may learn from verse 19. " Now 
we know, that what things soever the law saith, it saith 
to them who are under the law ; that every mouth 
may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty 
before God." Again, chapter v. verse 12. "Where- 
fore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and 



106 



TREATISE 



death by sin. and so death passed upon all men, for 
that all have sinned." That the scriptures abundant- 
ly prove, that all men are sinners, and in an unrecon- 
ciled state, considered under the law, or in the earthly 
nature, will not be disputed by any. Then it is cer- 
tainly man that needs reconciliation. Men, while 
dictated by a carnal mind are dissatisfied with God ; 
they accuse him of being an hard master, reaping 
where he has not sown, and gathering where he has 
not strawed. They think on the Almighty, but desire 
not the knowledge of his ways. They behold no beau- 
ty in him; he appears as a tyrant, regardless of the 
happiness of his creatures. A consciousness of sin, 
without the knowledge of God, represents Deity as 
angry, and full of vengeance ; in which sense, many 
scriptures are written, as we have before observed. 
How often do we find, that God has been provoked to 
wrath and jealousy, and his fury raised to a flame 
against the sinner ? And how often do the scriptures 
represent him repenting of his anger, and growing 
calm ! All these scriptures are written according to 
the circumstance of the creature, and the apprehen- 
sions which the unreconciled entertain of God. View- 
ing man in this state of unreconciliation to God, and 
holiness, it appears evidently necessary, that he should, 
receive an atonement productive of a renewal of love 
to his maker. Without atonement, God could never 
be seen as he is, " altogether lovely, and the chiefest, 
among ten thousand ; " nor could he be loved with the 
whole heart, mind, might and strength. How often 
are men grumbling at Providence, that things should 
be governed as they are ? How often are men dis- 
pleased at the Supreme Being himself? What an in- 
finite number of hard speeches have sinners spoken 



ON ATONEMENT. 



against God ? All which argue the necessity of atone- 
ment, whereby those maladies may be healed. 

What an infinite difference there is between the 
All-gracious and Merciful, and his lost and bewilder- 
ed creatures ? He, all glorious, without a spot in the 
whole infinitude of his nature ; all lovely, without ex- 
ception, and loving, without partiality. Who can tell 
the thousandth part of his love to his offspring ? And 
this invariably the same through every dispensation, 
without the smallest abatement. But what can we say, 
of man ? Lost in the wilderness of sin, wandering in 
the by-paths of iniquity, lost to the knowledge of his 
heavenly Benefactor, and dissatisfied with his God ; he 
goes on grumbling and complaining, attributing the 
worst of characters to the most merciful of beings, and 
entertaining no regard for the fountain of all his com- 
forts. God never called for a sacrifice to reconcile 
himself to man ; but loved man so that he was pleased 
to bruise his Son for our good, to give him to die, in 
attestation of love to sinners. 

The belief, that the great Jehovah was offended 
with his creatures to that degree, that nothing but the 
death of Christ, or the endless misery of mankind, 
could appease his anger, is an idea that has done more 
injury to the christian religion, than the writings of all 
its opposers, for many centuries. The error has been 
fatal to the life and spirit of the religion of Christ in 
our world ; all those principles which are to be dread- 
ed by men, have been believed to exist in God; and 
professors have been moulded into the image of their 
Deity, and become more cruel than the uncultivated 
savage ! A persecuting inquisition is a lively represen- 
tation of the God which professed christians have be- 
lieved in, ever since the apostacy It is every day's 



108 



TREATISE 



practice to represent the Almighty so offended with 
man, that he employs his infinite mind in devising un- 
speakable tortures, as retaliations on those with whom 
he is offended. Those ideas have so obscured the 
whole nature of God from us, that the capacious reli- 
gion of the human mind has been darkened by an al- 
most impenetrable cloud ; even the tender charities of 
nature have been frozen with such tenets, and the na- 
tural friendship common to human society, has, in a 
thousand instances, been driven from the walks of 
man. 

But, says the reader, is it likely, that persecution ev- 
er rose from men's believing, that God was an enemy 
to wicked men ? Undoubtedly ; for, had all professors 
of Christianity believed, that God had compassion on 
the ignorant, and those who are out of the way, how 
could they have persecuted those whom they believed 
in error ? But, with contrary views, those who pro- 
fessed to believe in Christ, who professed to be the real 
disciples of him who taught his disciples to love their 
enemies, have been the fomentors of persecution ; they 
have persecuted even unto death, those who could not 
believe all the absurdities in orthodox creeds. It 
may be asked, if those animosities did not arise from 
pride, ambition and carnal mindedness ? We answer, 
yes; and so does the God in whom persecuting chris- 
tians believe, for they form a God altogether like unto 
themselves ; therefore, while they vainly fancy they 
are in the service of the true God, they are following 
the dictates of pride and unlawful ambition, the natu- 
ral productions of a carnal mind ? and atonement is the 
only remedy for the evil. 

Men are dissatisfied with the Almighty and his 
providence ; they are dissatisfied with, and are ene- 



OM ATONEMENT. 



109 



mies of, one another; whereas our true happiness 
consists in loving God, and our neighbors. Men in 
possession of vile appetites, pursue with greediness, 
their gratification; but still, they retain their wants, 
they are allied to heaven and holiness, and can never 
be happy without them. They are conscious of sin, 
and feel condemnation resting on their minds ; they 
look forward to the awful scene of dissolution, and 
start back with horror. Death is the King of terrors 
to the unreconciled ; how awful are the thoughts of 
death to those whose hopes are only the feeble pro- 
ductions of their fears and wants, unsupported with di- 
vine evidence! O, how necessary is atoning grace, 
on such an occasion, whereby a divine confidence may 
be enjoyed ; the value thereof cannot be estimated by 
earthly treasures ; all the shining dust of India, and 
the riches of the south, are poverty when compared 
with the riches of a reconciled mind. 

Without atonement, God's glorious design, in the 
everlasting welfare of his offspring, man, could never 
be effected ; the ordination of an infinitely merciful 
God could never be carried into effect. The Almigh- 
ty must not be deprived of the means of accomplishing 
his gracious designs. We read of his covenant with 
day and night, which cannot be broken ; but it would 
be broken at once, should the causes cease that pro- 
duce their changes. So of the covenant of eternal 
mercy, the testament of eternal life, it must be put in 
force by the death of the testator, and its life and im- 
mortal glory be brought to light through his resurrec- 
tion. Let it be understood, that it is man who re- 
ceives the atonement, who stands in need of recon- 
ciliation, who, being dissatisfied, needs satisfaction; 
and not place those imperfections and wants in him 
10 



110 



TREATISE 



who is infinite in his fulness; and the doctrine of 
atonement may be sought for in the nature of things,, 
and found to be rational to the understanding. 

That man receives the atonement, was evidently 
the opinion of St. Paul, see Romans v. 11. " And not 
only so, but we also joy in God, through our Lord 
Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the 
atonement" Were there a single passage in the 
scriptures that would reach half as far in proving 
that God received the atonement, as the one just quo- 
ted does to prove that man received it, the matter 
might be considered more disputable then it now is. 

We read, that men are enemies to God. by wicked 
works, which teaches us that enmity is wickedness: 
Should we then dare to say, that God is our enemy? 
It is wrong for us to be enemies, even to those who 
injure us, much more to those who never had it in 
their power to do us any harm. We wish to ask, did 
any of God's creatures ever injure him ? Surely not. 
Why then does he turn our enemy ? He commands 
us to love our enemies ; that we may be like him ? but 
if he hate his enemies, we must hate ours if we 
would be like him. If he is not our enemy, he needs 
no atonement. But if men are enemies to God, they 
need an atonement to bring them to love him who loves 
them. 

Here the reader will observe we shun those difficul- 
ties which have represented the gospel of Christ so 
inconsistent. We now view the Almighty the same, 
yesterday, to day and forever ; by no means changed 
in his disposition towards his creatures, but always 
designing and working all things for their good. 
Here is no need of the self-contradictory notion of alter- 
ing an unalterable being; of satisfying an infinite dissatis- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



Ill 



faction ; of reconciling a being who was never unrec- 
onciled ; of producing love in love itself ; of causing 
an eternal unchangeable friend to be friendly, or 
of offering a sacrifice to the eternal Father of our 
spirits, to cause him to love and have mercy on his 
offspring. 

How much more reasonable it is, to suppose our- 
selves in need of those alterations. But unhappily, 
men have looked at Deity through the medium of a 
carnal mind, and have formed all their evil tempers in 
Jehovah ; like the deceived astronomer, who fancied 
he saw a monster in the sun, occasioned by a fly on 
his glass. The creature being in the medium of sight, 
was supposed to be in the object beheld ; and though 
it was small in itself, and would have appeared so, 
could it have been seen where it was ; yet carrying it 
into the sun, it magnified to an enormous size. So 
it is with the vile and sinful passions, could we behold 
them in ourselves, and view them as they are, they 
would appear in their finite and limited sphere ; but 
the moment we form those passions in Deity, they 
magnify to infinity. Let a council of astronomers be 
called, who are all deceived by the fly ; let them con- 
sult on the size of the monster, calculate how long it 
has been growing, and how soon it may wholly absorb 
the sun ; let them endeavor to account for its cause, 
and analyze its constitution, inform us of the degrees 
of heat its lungs sustain, and how many degrees hotter 
it is than iron can be heated in a furnace. But here 
is room for disagreement, which may give rise to great 
disputations. To one, it appears mtich larger than to 
another ; they cannot judge alike, with regard to its 
age, nor how much larger it will grow ; some are 
ready to dispute its being a living creature, fancying 



112 



TREATISE 



it may be an opaque body. They are all agreed, that 
there is a phenomenon in the sun, but dispute, and 
even quarrel, about its peculiarities. What would 
become of all their calculations, the moment they 
should discover the fly ? All would be gone, at once, 
and the sun would be relieved of the burden of so 
ponderous a monster. 

How many various calculations have divines made 
on the fury and wrath which they have discovered 
in God ! How much they have preached and written, 
on the awful subject ; and how many ways they have 
invented, to appease such wrath and vengeance ! When 
we come to see the error, and find those principles in 
ourselves, all those notions vanish at once. The fly 
on the glass might easily have been removed, or de- 
stroyed ; but had there been a monster in the sun, 
what calculations could mortals have made to remove 
it ? Epmity in man may be overcome with love ; but, 
did it exist in God, it must be infinite and eternal. 

To conclude, the supposition, that Deity receives 
the atonement, or any possible advantage from the 
gospel plan ; whereby an alteration is effected in him, 
for the better, amounts to the inexplicable absurdity 
of making omniscience more wise, omnipotence more 
powerful, justice more just ; and of giving love the 
power of loving, of making mercy more merciful, 
truth more true, and goodness better ; for these are the 
seven spirits of God, which are in all the earth, and 
they are without the shadow of turning. 

Having shown, as we hope, to the reader's satisfac- 
tion, the necessity of atonement, and where satisfac- 
tion must be made and reconciliation take place, we 
shall pass to make some inquiries into 



ON ATONEMENT. 



113 



The personage of the Mediator who makes the Atone- 
ment, and his ability for performing the zvork. 
We have already stated some of the absurdities 
contained in the opinions of most christians, respect- 
ing the mediator ; we shall now be a little more partic- 
ular on the subject. 

We shall contend, that the Mediator is a created 
dependent being. That he is a created being, is 
proved from Rev. iii. 14, where he is said to be " the 
beginning of the creation of God. " His dependency 
is proved, by his frequent prayers to the Father. That 
he acknowledged a superior, when on earth, is evident 
from many passages which might be quoted. See. St. 
John v. 19. Christ here says, " The Son can do 
nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do. n 
He acknowledged a superior in knowledge ; see Mat- 
thew xxiv. 86. " But of that day and hour knoweth 
no man, no, not the angels in heaven, but my Father 
only. " This passage implies, that he did not know of 
that day himself. St. Mark is still more explicit ; see 
chap. xiii. 32. " But of that day and that hour know- 
eth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, 
neither the Son, but the Father." And further, that 
he acknowledges a superior, even in his risen glory, 
may be proved from his own words to his servant 
John, on the Isle of Patmos, see Rev. iii. 12. "Him 
that overcometh, will I make a pillar in the temple of 
my God, and he shall go no more out ; and I will 
write upon him the name of my God, and the name 
of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which 
cometh down out of heaven from my God, and I will 
write upon him my new name." Four times, in the 
above passage, he acknowledges a being whom he 
worships. Again, see Psalm xlv, 7. "Thou lovest; 
10* 



114 



TREATISE 



righteousness and hatest wickedness, because God, 
thy God hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness 
above thy fellows." The reader will observe, we 
have ventured to put the word because, in room of 
the word therefore, in this quotation; but we have 
not done it without the authority of a former transla- 
tion. The difference is so essential, we cannot dis- 
pense with it. Observe, the writer of the Psalm ad- 
dresses one God, and speaks, in his address, of an- 
other, see ver. 6, " Thy throne, O God, is forever and 
ever." This God is dependant on another, expressed 
in the 7th verse, Because God, thy God hath anoint- 
ed thee, &c. That the names, God, Lord, and ever- 
lasting Father, are applied to Christ, we shall not dis- 
pute ; neither shall we dispute the propriety of it; 
but we do not admit, that they mean the self-existent 
Jehovah, when applied to the Mediator. In the quo- 
tation from the Psalm, Christ is said to be anointed 
above his fellows. Fellows are equals. Who are 
Christ's equals ? Perhaps the reader may say, they 
are the Father and the Holy Spirit ; but we can hard- 
ly believe, that Christ was anointed with the oil of 
gladness above his Father, neither do we believe any 
one will contend for it. We are sensible, that God 
speaks, by the prophet, of smiting the man who is hi? 
fellow ; but this fellowship must be different from the 
one just spoken of, and stands only in an official sense. 
The reader will then ask, if we would consider the 
Mediator no more than equal with men? We answer, 
yes, were it not that our Father and his Father, our 
God and his God, hath anointed him above his fel- 
lows. See Phillipians ii. 9. " Wherefore God also 
hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which 
is above every name." For this exaltation and name, 
he was dependant on his Father, and received them 



ON ATONEMENT. 



115 



from him. This name, which is above every name, is 
the name of God, named on Jesus. It will be said, 
Christ taught the people, that he and his Father were 
one. We grant he did, and if that prove him to be es- 
sentially God, the argument must run farther than the 
objector would wish to have it. See St. John xvii.ll. 
Christ prays that his disciples may be one, even 
as he and the Father are one. The oneness of the 
Father and Son, is their union and agreement in 
the great work which he has undertaken ; and he 
prayed that his disciples might be as w r ell agreed in 
the gospel of salvation, as he and his Father were, 
see verse 18. " As thou hast sent me into the world, 
so have I also sent them into the world." The Fath- 
er of all mercies sent his Son Jesus into the world, 
for a certain purpose ; and there was a perfect agree- 
ment between them, in all things. He says, he came 
not to do his own will, but the will of him who sent 
him. And again, My meat and drink, is to do the 
will of him who sent me, and to finish his work. 

The President of the United States sends a minis- 
ter to negotiate a peace at a foreign court ; this min- 
ister must conduct according to the authority which 
he derives from him, by whom he is sent ; and as far 
as he does, he is, in his official character, the power 
that sent him. It is evident, Christ received the pow- 
er which he exercises in the work which he hath un- 
dertaken, and that his kingdom was given to him, 
which goes to prove, he did not eternally possess 
them ; see Dan. vii. 14, " And there was given him 
dominion and glory, and a kingdom." According to 
the prophecy here quoted, the dominion, glory and 
kingdom of Christ were given him. The people 
whom he is to rule are given him, see Psalm ii. 8. 
" Ask of me, and I shall give the heathen for thine 



116 



TREATISE 



inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for 
thy possession." St. Matthew xxviii. 18. Jesus 
saith, " All power is given unto me in heaven and 
earth." Chap. xi. 27. " All things are delivered un- 
to me of my Father." These and many more passa- 
ges are found in sacred writ, in support of the depend- 
ance of the Mediator on the Supreme Eternal, and 
that he derives his power and glory from him. But if 
Christ be essentially God, all those scriptures seem 
without just signification. 

It is written, that man was created in the image of 
God; and, by the light of the gospel St. Paul ven- 
tured to assert, that Christ is this image. The read- 
er will do well to observe, that the image of a per- 
son, and the person, are not essentially one, but some 
knowledge of a person may be obtained by his true 
image. Christ being the image of God, it is by him 
we learn the nature of the Father. Christ saith, "No 
man knoweth the Father but the Son, and he to whom 
the Son revealeth him." Again, u No man cometh 
unto the Father, but by me." St. Paul is particular, 
on this subject, in his 1st Epistle to Timothy, see 
chap. ii. verse 5. " For there is one God, and one 
Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Je- 
sus." It seems, by this testimony, that St. Paul was 
a stranger to the notion of Christ's being essentially 
God, as it would be improper to call him a man, 
were that the case. If it be argued, that Christ is 
God and man both, we ask, was it the whole divine 
nature which constituted the divinity of Christ ? If 
this question be answered in the affirmative, we desire 
to know where that divinity is which constitutes the 
other two persons in the Godhead. If the question 
be answered in the negative, and it be argued, that 



ON ATONEME.NT. 



117 



the divinity which Christ possessed was an emanation 
from Jehovah, it is coming directly to what we contend 
for, viz. that he is a created being. 

As we have seen, from the prophecy of Daniel, that 
Christ received his kingdom ; so we are taught, by 
St. Paul, that he will deliver up his kingdom to the 
Father, when he has accomplished the grand object of 
His reign, see 1 Cor. xv. 24, 25, 26, 27, 28. " Then 
cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the 
kingdom to God, even the Father: when he shall have 
put down all rule, and all authority, and power. For 
he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his 
feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 
For he hath put all things under his feet. But when 
*he saith, all things are put under him, it is manifest 
that he is excepted which did put all things under 
him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, 
then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him 
that put all things under him, that God may be all 
in all" 

Enough, perhaps, is written, on this part of our 
query, to make the matter plain to the reader, although 
much more might be quoted from the scriptures, in sup- 
port of what we have argued. 

We next inquire, has the Mediator power or ability, 
to perform the great work of atonement, which is the 
reconciliation of the world to God ? Those scriptures, 
with their connexions, which we have quoted to prove 
the Mediator's dependency, abundantly prove the suf- 
ficiency of hi& power to accomplish the work in which 
he is engaged. If all power in heaven and earth be 
committed to Christ, no doubt can be entertained of 
its sufficiency. If the whole system of law in moral 
nature be subservient to the designs of the Redeemer 3 



IIS 



TREATISE 



and if he holds in his hands the power of moral gov- 
ernment, it certainly must be at his option, whether 
men shall be reconciled to God, or not. 

It may not be amiss to inquire, in this place, whe- 
ther men, in their individual capacity, have the powei 
of moral government ? If they have, the great work 
of reconciliation might be performed by them, which 
would render the mission of Christ unnecessary. We 
ought not to suppose the Almighty ever purposed 
more than one way to produce the same event ; if 
he has given ability to each individual to effect a com- 
plete reconciliation in himself, it is not consistent to 
believe that this work of reconciliation will be done by 
a Mediator ; but if the work of reconciling all things 
to God is assigned to Christ, it is not reasonable to 
believe we have power to perform it ourselves. And 
we think it will not be deemed admissible, that we 
have power to hinder this work of reconciliation, as 
that would, in effect, deny the truth of all power be- 
ing given to Christ. We ought to consider, that 
Christ was by no means ignorant of man ; that he 
needed none to testify of man, as he knew what w T as 
in man. He knew the moral distance which man had 
wandered from God, he knew all the expense of re- 
covering him to holiness and happiness ; and it ap- 
pears rational, that he knew whether he possessed abil- 
ity to defray this expense or not ; and if he knew he 
did not possess this ability, he would not have under- 
taken it. We ought not to suppose the Mediator 
would act as unwisely as a man who undertakes to 
build a large house, without first counting the cost, to 
know if he be able to finish a building so expensive ; 
or as a king would do, who should make war on ano- 
ther king, without first consulting whether he were 



ON ATONEMENT. 



119 



able to contend with the double numbers which his 
adversary commanded. 

St. Paul, writing to the Collossians, saith, of Christ, 
he is the first born from the dead, that in all things he 
might have the pre-eminence ; for it pleased the Fath- 
er, that in him all fullness should dwell ; and that the 
Father had made peace, through the blood of his cross ; 
and then informs them for what this peace was made 
see chap. i. verse 20. " By him to reconcile all things 
unto himself: by him, I say, whether they be things 
in earth, or things in heaven." In Isaiah ix. 6, we 
have a beautiful prophetic testimony of the power and 
kingdom of the Saviour. " For unto us a child is 
born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall 
be upon his shoulder and his name shall be called Won- 
derful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting 
Father, the Prince of Peace." And in the beginning of 
the next verse, the extent of his dominion is spoken of 
" And of the increase of his goverment and peace 
there shall be no end." There is a great number of 
like passages, which, in the course of this work, we 
shall have occasion to introduce ; but enough is al- 
ready quoted, to show for what this power was given 
to Christ, and that it is sufficient to accomplish the end 
intended. Again, it may be reasonable to argue, that 
if the Almighty committed power into the hands of 
Christ, for the performance of any thing whatever, if 
there should be found, at last, a want of power for the 
work intended, it would prove a want of wisdom, in 
the giver of such pow r er. No one, who professes to 
believe at all in Christ, will dispute his power for the 
performance of all his will : But we wish to have the 
reader satisfied, in respect to this power, and in what 
it consists, which, to make as clear as possible, we con- 



TREATISE 



nect with our last particular in this general inquiry, 
which is, 

ATONEMENT IN ITS NATURE. 

We have already observed that atonement and re- 
conciliation are the same. Reconciliation is a renew- 
al of love, and love is the law of the spirit of life in 
Christ Jesus, of which St Paul speaks, in Romans viii. 
2, by which he was made free from the law of sin. 
The soul, when governed by the law of sin w T hich is 
in the members, of which St. Paul speaks, in Romans 
vii. 23, is in a state of unreconciliation to the law of 
the spirit. And it is by the force and power of the 
law of love, in Christ, that the soul is delivered from 
the government of the law of sin ; the process of this 
deliverance is the work of atonement, or reconcilia- 
tion. 

The reader will now see, with ease, that, that pow- 
er which causes us to hate sin, and love holiness, is the 
power of Christ, whereby atonement is made. All the 
law and the prophets rested on this spirit of love, by 
which alone they can be fulfilled. 

Our Saviour, in his official character, is always call- 
ed by the names, which are applicable to God, man- 
ifest in the flesh. This circumstance will fully ac- 
count for all the scriptures which our opponent would 
urge, in support of Jesus' being essentially God. 

Christ came not to destroy the law and the pro 
phets, but to fulfil them ; the law is as far fulfilled, in 
the soul, as it is brought to love God, in his adorable 
image, Jesus ; and a complete fulfilment of the law 
and the prophets, will effect love, in every soul, on 
whom the law, in a moral sense, is binding. 



ON ATONEMENT- 



121 



Let it be asked, by what means are we brought to 
Jove God ? Answer, " We love him because he first 
loved us." God's love to us is antecedent to our love 
to him, which refutes the notion of God's receiving 
the atonement; but the idea, that the manifestation 
of God's love to us, causes us to love him, and brings 
us to a renewal of love, is perfectly consonant to the 
necessity of atonement, it shows us what atonement is, 
and the power which the Mediator must have and 
exercise, in order to reconcile all things to God. 

The method, by which we are brought to love any 
object, whatever, is, by seeing, or thinking we see, 
some beauty in the object ; and our love is always in 
proportion to the apparent good qualities of the object 
seen. 

While our minds are darkened, by the veil on the 
heart, in reading of Moses, so that the beauties of the 
ministration of life are hidden from our eyes, and its 
excellent glories are out of our sight, it is impossible 
that we should love Christ, or his word. Yet, during 
this darkness, we must love something; therefore, as 
sin and the vanities of elementary life present the great- 
est beauty to our eyes, of any objects which we be- 
hold, our affections are placed on those corruptible 
things. 

Now we call up the question again, has Jesus pow- 
er to cause us to love holiness, and to hate sin ? An- 
swer, yes, if he has power to reveal the divine beau- 
ties of the word, to remove the letter and its adminis- 
tration which are death, to take the veil from the 
heart, and to cause us to see himself altogether lovely. 

When a sinner views God as an enemy, and grum- 
bles concerning his being hard and austere, when he 
feels an aversion to him, and wishes to avoid his pres- 
11 



122 TREATISE 

ence, it is certain the Son hath not revealed the Fath- 
er to that soul. The ideas thus entertained of God are 
altogether wrong, and the mind that entertains them 
has no just conceptions of the Almighty. But blessed 
be the expressed image of the Invisible ; he hath pow- 
er to reveal the true character of the Father, to remove 
the veil from the heart, and to let the sun-beams of 
divine light gently into the understanding; then God 
appears altogether lovely, and the chiefest among ten 
thousand, while the soul in ecstacy embraces the 
brightness of his glory, crying, " My Lord, and my 
God." But the idea of the letter is so fixed in the 
minds of christian people, in general, that the veil of 
the lata is as fully on their hearts, as it was on the 
Pharisees of old, which caused them to be blind to 
their Messiah when he came. 

Christians have for a long time, believed, that the 
temporal death of Christ made an atonement for sin, 
and that the literal blood of the man who was cruci- 
fied, has efficacy to cleanse from guilt ; but surely this 
is carnality, and carnal mindedness, if we have any 
knowledge of the apostle's meaning, where he says 7 
" To be carnally minded, is death." The letter kill- 
eth, but the spirit giveth life. The apostles were 
made able ministers of the new testament, not of the 
letter, but of the spirit. Christ saith, " except ye eat 
my flesh, and drink my blood ye have no life in you." 
Must we understand this in a literal sense ? If we 
do, how shall we understand what he further says of 
this matter ? " The flesh profiteth nothing : the words 
which I speak, they are spirit and they are life. 

The apostacy of the Jews happened, in consequence 
of the lips of the priests not preserving knowledge ; 
they fell from the spirit of the law, were lost in the 



ON ATONEMENT. 



123 



wilderness of the letter, and therefore were blinded. 
This was a figure of the more dreadful apostacy of 
christians, as were various other circumstances record- 
ed in the old testament. The christian apostacy hap- 
pened, in the same way ; and the church has been led 
into the wilderness of the letter, by an hireling priest- 
hood, who knew nothing of the spirit of the law ; who 
have preached, in the name of the Lord, the letter, 
which killeth, in room of the spirit, which giveth 
life. 

We are sensible there are thousands, who profess 
Christianity, who are blind enough to object and say, 
"Then the gospel has nothing to do, in the salvation 
of mankind.' 5 But suffer us to say, the gospel is 
nothing but the spirit of the law, which is the word, 
or logos, spoken in the law, brought forth from the 
shadows of the first dispensation. To believe in any 
other atonement, than the putting off the old man, 
with his deeds, and the putting on of the new man, 
which after God, is created in righteousness and true 
holiness, is carnal mindedness, and is death. 

There is nothing in heaven above, nor in the earth 
beneath, that can do away sin, but love ; and we have 
reason to be thankful, that love is stronger than death, 
that many waters cannot quench it, nor the floods 
drown it ; that it hath power to remove the moral mal- 
adies of mankind, and to make us free from the law 
of sin and death, to reconcile us to God, and to wash 
us pure in the blood, or life, of the everlasting cove- 
nant. O love, thou great Physician of souls, what a 
work hast thou undertaken! All souls are thy pa- 
tients ; prosperous be thy labors, thou bruiser of the 
head of carnal mind. 

In this view of the subject, we may see how the di- 



124 



TREATISE 



vine grace of reconciliation may be communicated to 
those who have never been privileged with the volumft, 
of divine revelation, and who have never heard the 
name of a Mediator proclaimed as the only way of 
life and salvation. We have no doubt but thousands, 
whose education has taught them to look on the chris- 
tian religion as an imposture, may possess a good de- 
gree of this love, which is the spirit of life in Christ 
Jesus ; and though none can feel or experience this di- 
vine animation, only through the medium of the se- 
cond Adam, we do not conceive that its agency is con- 
fined particularly to names, sects, denominations, peo- 
ple or kingdoms. 

The wordy which is nigh us, even in our hearts and 
mouths, is every where, operating, in some degree, in 
all hearts. The emnity, which God put between the 
seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman, is eve- 
ry where felt, and the two are struggling in every 
breast. When the creature-like nature, or the carnal 
mind, which is enmity against God leads the whole 
man captive, it is then that the soul is in a state of un- 
reconciliation and death ; but when the heavenly man 
which, after God, is created in righteousness and true 
holiness, binds the strong man armed, and whispers 
heavenly invitations to the soul, revealing himself in 
the understanding, the soul immediately ceases to con? 
fer with flesh and blood, beholds with inexpressible ad- 
miration the heavenly beauties of the new nature, is 
moulded into its likeness, and experimentally become* 
a child of God ; the way to the tree of life is opened- 
and the soul enters by the anchor of hope within the 
veil, where the cherubims are disarmed of the flaming 
sword, and stand looking down on the mercy seat, 
where God communes with his people, Thus 2 by tb§ 



ON ATONEMENT. 



125 



spirit of the word, the soul is brought to a sweet com- 
munion with God, it feels its eternal sonship, and re- 
joices therein, with joy unspeakable and full of glory. 

Perhaps the christian reader will here pause, and 
say, I can witness, that what the author writes is true ; 
but then, he does not tell of a regular law work ; 
without which, we can never be brought to taste those 
delicacies in the gospel provisions, To this observa- 
tion, we reply, we belieye there are as egregious er- 
rors crept into the christian church, in this particular, 
as in any thing relative to the christian religion ; and 
we further believe, that, among those, who have really 
tasted, that the Lord is gracious, there are such dif- 
ferences, on the above point, that, in many instances, 
they amount to a disfellowship, and tend greatly to 
destroy the blessed work begun in the heart. But 
those errors undoubtedly originate in some theories 
which are produced by the wisdom of the carnal mind, 
which is so opposed to the wisdom from above, that it 
is always endeavoring to introduce something that 
may serve to raise animosities, and to sow discord 
among brethren. 

Some, who, by the force of a false education, have 
been led to believe, that God is an enemy to the sinner, 
have supposed they were every day exposed to the just 
vengeance of the Almighty, and have fancied that they 
could clearly see the justice of God, in their eternal 
banishment from heaven and happiness ; and they 
have been so wrecked, on this wheel of torture, as 
to be deprived of sleep and every kind of repose, for a 
tedious time, some longer and some shorter. Awful 
dreams, fraught with the most terrifying imaginations, 
have corroded the mind ; and sometimes, a burning 

lake of fire and brimstone has been painted so clearly, 
11* 



128 



TREATISE 



that, for several days together, the poor frightened soon 
would feel as if it were on the brink of a precipice ex- 
pecting the next moment to be the fatal one. In this 
awful situation, it pleases God to manifest himself; and 
in a moment, all those frightful imaginations are dis- 
persed, and an universal calm takes possession of the 
whole region of the mind. The soul now rejoices, as 
a captive set at liberty, or a pardoned criminal ; and 
there is nothing to be heard, from him, but the praises 
of his Benefactor. In this hour of joy, should he hear 
ten thousand singing praises to his Redeemer, he 
would not wish to stop them, to know whether they 
had all felt just as he had, before he knew the truth. 
But, in a short time, carnal mind, still alive in the mem- 
bers, begins to make its intrusions, and in a very de- 
ceitful way. It pretends to wish to help the soul along 
in religion, and says, there must be a close examination, 
it will not do to harbor errors, &c. But, in room of set- 
ting the creature to examine himself, it sets him to ex- 
amine his brother ; his brother happens to be one, who, 
in fact, loves Christ and his word, and, to all appearance, 
walks in the path of obedience ; but, he is one, whose 
education was not quite so perverse as was his, and 
one who was taught, that God is an enemy to sin not 
to sinners ; that he will chastise, for iniquity, but that 
God is not so incensed as some imagine. This broth- 
er cannot tell all that his interrogator has experienced,, 
and is, therefdre, rejected, for not telling a good law 
work. 

It is now possible, that the reader is more surprised 
than before, and will say, the author does not talk like 
a christian ; and, feeling some disagreeable emotion, 
he thinks he will read no further. But stop, dear sir ; 
that determination may arise wholly from a want of 



ON ATONEMENT. 



127 



divine charity. If you are, in reality, a christian, and 
stand in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made 
you free , what you here read will do you no harm. 

We are now about to examine your law work, as 
you call .it, and shall argue, that what you call law, is 
only a creature of false education. 

Before you found peace, you thought you could see 
the justice of God in your eternal exclusion from hea- 
ven and happiness. Now we ask, can you find, that 
God ever gave a law to man which required endless 
misery, in case of disobedience? Sure we are, the 
scriptures speak of none, neither do the dictates of 
good reason admit of its existence. Perhaps our op- 
ponent may say, we are not to use our reason in mat- 
ters of religion. We answer, if we are not to under- 
stand the things of God, by scripture and reason, we 
are at a loss to know how to come at them. We have 
before argued this point particularly, in order to show 
that such a penalty does not exist in the law of God. 
Did you think, an exclusion from heaven and happi- 
ness would be an exclusion from holiness and righ- 
teousness ? Did you ever see the justice of God, in 
your being sinful, unholy and impure ? You answer, 
no. Then you never saw the justice of God in your 
endless exclusion from heaven and happiness. 

A false education has riveted the error in the minds 
of thousands, that God's law required endless misery 
to be inflicted on the sinner. How often do professed 
christians address the Almighty, and say, " Hadst thou 
been just to have marked iniquity, we should, long 
since, have been in the grave, with the dead, and in 
hell with the damned." This address amounts to no- 
thing more, or less, than a complimental accusation 
against God, of injustice ! It surprises us, to think 



128 



TREATISE 



now professed christians will contend for the honor 
and glory of God, in a way that renders his character 
infinitely inglorious and dishonorable. 

Further, you believed, (you say) before you were a 
believer in the truth, that you stood in danger, every 
moment, of falling into endless misery. We would 
ask, if that were true, which you believed before you 
believed the truth ? We further ask, are you now ex- 
posed to those dreadful torments ? You will say, you 
hope for the better. And what is it that now pre- 
serves you from such danger ? You confess it is your 
Saviour. But was it not he who preserved you be- 
fore yoifr conversion ? And are you more safe in his 
hands at one time than at another? 

Some have gone so far, in their law work, as to say, 
they saw the justice of God so plainly, and it appear- 
ed so beautiful, that they were perfectly willing to be 
endlessly miserable, according to its requirements. 
Such christians will not allow, that a person can be 
savingly converted, without being first willing to be 
endlessly miserable. This we must confess, is a law 
work as unreconcilable to scripture and reason, as it is 
corrosive to the mind. The amount of it is this, I 
see so much beauty and divine excellency, in the jus- 
tice of God, that I am perfectly willing to exist, to all 
eternity, in rebellion against it ! We wish to know, 
what the soul has to be thankful for, in the work of 
salvation ? If it be brought to be willing to be end- 
lessly miserable, it cannot be thankful for the gift of 
eternal life. Again, if a willingness to be damned, is 
a good situation, we ought to continue in it; and then 
hell and endless woe would be as valuable a prize, for 
which to run, in the christian race, as heaven and im- 
mortality. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



129 



It is generally believed, the Saviour strives, by his 
Spirit, to bring the creature into a state of grace and 
salvation ; and that the devil strives, with all his wily- 
arts, to get the soul into hell and endless torments. 
Now, if these things be so, to which is the soul recon- 
ciled, when it is willing to be endlessly miserable ? 
That multitudes have been in great fear of being re- 
jected by the Almighty, at last, we have no doubt ; for 
we confess those torments have been ours, in no small 
degree. But we contend, it is impossible for any one 
to be willing to be endlessly miserable. Happiness 
always was, and always will be, the grand object of all 
rational beings ; and to reverse this object, would be to 
reverse man from a reasonable, to an unreasonable 
Creature. 

The above notion of law work, has been the awful 
means of driving multitudes of blinded mortals into as 
much despair, as the mind is capable of. Honest 
hearted persons, who do not wish to be deceived, or to 
deceive others, knowing that they never felt willing to 
be damned, and being told they must be willing in or- 
der to be saved, have supposed, that God had already 
reprobated their fearful souls to endless ruin ! Others 
have been so deceived, as to think they had better be 
willing to be damned than not to be saved; desiring 
salvation so much, they think they had better be will- 
ing to be shut out of heaven forever, than to miss of 
salvation, and have, either honestly or hypocritically, 
said, they were willing to be damned ; expecting great 
favors, in consequence of the confession. The mo- 
ment we have a just idea of the spirit of the law making 
an atonement for sin, all those absurdities and contra- 
dictions are removed, and their causes taken away. 

We doubt not but God communicates his grace to 



130 



TREATISE 



persons laboring under every kind of deception ; and 
in respect to that grace, no dispute arises, among be- 
lievers. Their disputes arise, from notions which they 
entertained before they were enlightened, or from cer- 
tain inventions of their own, afterwards, which do not 
arise from the spirit of truth, 

The divine efficacy of this atoning grace may be 
communicated to the most vile and profligate person 
in the world, and stop him in his full career of wick- 
edness ; it can show the sinner, in a moment, the de- 
formity of sin, and the beauty of holiness. In other 
instances, the morally virtuous are led a long time in 
concern and great trouble, about themselves, before 
they find him of whom Moses and the prophets did 
write. 

God is not confined to character, time or place, to 
work the work of atonement in the soul ; he does all 
things well, and in the best time and way ; and chris- 
tians do very wrong, to contend about those differen- 
ces which sin and deception caused in them, before 
they knew Christ. 

Two persons are discoursing about the agreeable 
flavor of the pine-apple; one says to the other, it 
tastes very differently from what I expected it would 
before I tasted it ; I thought it was a crabbed sour. 
Says the other, I am sure you never tasted of a pine- 
apple ; for, before I tasted of one, I thought it was a 
disagreeable bitter. Thus they dispute, each in his 
turn arguing, that the other had never tasted of the 
fruit, because they had different ideas about it, before 
they actually had any knowledge of it. 

Would you not, kind reader, advise those dis- 
putants to come to a solution of their question in a 
different way? Surely you would; and if they 



ON ATONEMENT. 



131 



could agree, about the real taste of the apple; you 
would advise them to let their former false notions 
alone. 

Then, christian reader, go and do likewise, in the 
the religion of Jesus ; and wherever you find a broth- 
er, who has, in reality, tasted that the Lord is gracious, 
fellowship him, as one initiated into the kingdom of 
God. 

Atonement by Christ, was never intended to per- 
form impossibilities ; therefore, it was never designed 
to make men agree, and live in peace, while they are 
destitute of love one to another ; but it is calculated 
and designed to inspire the mind with that true love 
which will produce peace in Jesus. As atonement is 
a complete fulfilment of the law of the heavenly man, 
it causes its recipient to love God and his fellow crea- 
tures, in as great a degree as he partakes of its na- 
ture. Ask one brought out of darkness into the mar- 
vellous light of the gospel, how God appears to him ; 
and he will answer, more glorious than he can de- 
scribe. Ask him how he feels towards his fellow men ; 
and he will say, even of his enemies, he wishes them 
po worse than to enjoy the blessings of divine favor. 
In times of refreshing, how many thousands have 
been heard to speak of the goodness of the Lord, and 
of the infinite fulness of his grace ; and with what love, 
affection and fervency, have they invited their fellow 
men to the rich provisions of the gospel ! 

The earth, in time of drought, ceases to be fruitful ; 
the streams and springs thereof are dried up ; the fields 
put off their robes of green, and gardens afford no fra- 
grant delights ; but when the heavens give the wonted 
blessing in gentle showers, how suddenly is the face of 
nature changed! The purling rill murmurs through 



132 



TREATISE 



the mead, pastures and fields teem with vegetation, 
and gardens blush with enamelled beauties. So the 
soul, unwatered with the rain of righteousness, and 
destitute of the waters of eternal life, is like a bar- 
ren fig-tree that yields no wholesome fruit. But be- 
hold the transition ; the moment atoning grace is ef- 
fective in the mind, the parched ground becomes a 
pool, and the thirsty land, streams of water. The soul 
is like the earth that drinketh in the rain that cometh 
oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by 
whom they are dressed ; and, like a garden well wa- 
tered and cultivated, yielding all manner of precious 
fruits. Look on the trees after autumn has plucked 
their leaves, and winter frozen their trunks and limbs: 
Without faith in spring, their future life would be 
hopeless ; but wait for the season of nature's appoint- 
ment, when the increasing majesty of the sunbeams 
gently removes the chains of frost, and warm zephyrs 
are breathed on the surrounding snow, removing it 
from the land ; the embryo blossom, nicely concealed 
in frost, now swells with genial heat ; and the leaf, so 
nicely folded in winter's chest, now displays its match 
less green, and the whole forest rejoices in expanded 
delights. So if we look on man, in the sinful Adam, 
there is no appearance of heavenly life, or divine ani- 
mation ; the soul is bound in the fetters of sin, frozen 
with covetousness, and apparently dead in the winter 
of iniquity. But behold the Sun of righteousness ari? 
ing with healing in his wings, removing sin, by the 
power of grace, and killing moral death, with divine 
life and animation, and causing the soul to rejoice in 
the kingdom of grace and glory. Then it may be 
rightly said, " The winter is past the rains are over and 
gone, the flowers appear on the earth, and the time of 



ON ATONEMENT. 



133 



singing is come." How mysterious are the ways of 
God ! What infinite depths of wisdom lie concealed 
from the sight of mortals ! He, who varies the seas- 
ons of the year, and diversifies nature through so 
great a number of changes, without losing the small- 
est particle of matter, can carry his rational creatures 
through all the dispensations designed in infinite wis- 
dom, without losing any, and consummate the whole 
in glory at last. 

Suffer us, kind reader, in our faithfulness with the 
saints, to excite a close examination. It can be of no 
avail, to believe, we are partakers of atoning grace, un- 
less that is really the case. We are of opinion, that 
many may be deceived in these things ; some may 
suppose they are experimentally acquainted with them, 
when in reality, they have no other evidence of it, 
than that some godly minister, as they suppose him to 
be, can fellowship them as christians ; while others do, 
in reality, feel this divine spirit of grace, in its atoning 
operations, but dare not suffer themselves to believe it, 
because they have not obtained the approbation of 
some, in whom they have been taught to put confi 
dence. 

We would, therefore, note some faithful evidences, 
in this case, which will not deceive us ; and in doing 
this, we shall keep the reader close to the spirit of the 
law, which is love to God and man. From these two 
points and their consequences, all the evidence which 
can be obtained must be deduced. The question then 
is, do you love God ? If you answer yes, we ask, 
why do you love him ? and why do you endeavor to 
serve him ? If you answer, because it is your duty, 
and you fear his rod, if you do not ; we tell you, you 
are deceived ; you have no real love to your Maker. 
12 



134 



TREATISE 



Undoubtedly you would say, (as many vain professors 
have said) " If you were certain of salvation in the 
world to come, you would do all the mischief here you 
could." If the gospel of Jesus Christ have any ene- 
mies in this wicked world, you are of that class. 
Your profession of Christianity, for forty or fifty years ; 
your attention to church ordinances, and the mighty 
parade you have made in a round of (what you call) 
religious duties, have only served to paint you like a 
whited sepulchre : You lack the one thing needful, 
which is love. You are ready to oppose all profess- 
ors of Christianity who do not subscribe to your ar- 
ticles of faith. The weapons of your warfare are a 
tongue of slander, and a spirit of persecution ; and 
you are daily raising false accusations against those 
who faithfully serve the Lord in spirit and in truth. 
The pharisees of old made as great professions of re- 
ligion as you do, and were as punctual to those cus- 
toms, whereby they made void the law, as you are to 
those, whereby you make void the gospel ; and like 
you, they were zealous of defending their religion ; 
and in their zeal they murdered the Lord of life and 
glory ! Perhaps you will say, the author is hard in his 
reproofs. We reply, if you are not of the class of 
which we speak, you will not feel the rebuke ; but if 
you are, you not only deserve it, but greatly need it. 
On the other hand, if you can truly say, you love the 
Lord, on account of the divine beauties and excellen- 
cies you behold in him ; that he is in truth, to you, al- 
together lovely, and the chiefest among ten thousand ; 
that you delight in his service, because it is your meat 
and drink to do his will ; that your greatest enjoyment 
is obedience to his commands, which are joyous and 
not grievous, and in keeping of which, there is great 



ON ATONEMENT. 



135 



reward ; let your denomination be what it may, let 
you live in what part of the world you will, you are a 
friend to the religion of Jesus, and you have sweet 
communion with him who sits at the right hand of 
God. Are you rich in the things of this world ; you 
view all your possessions at the will, and you wish to 
have them at the disposal, of the Master whom you 
serve ; are you adorned with titles of human honor, 
how sweet is it to lay all these things at the feet of 
him whom you esteem infinitely honorable. Are you 
poor in the goods of fortune, you possess the true 
riches ; are you a disconsolate widow, behold God is 
your husband, and the father of your fatherless chil- 
dren. 

Atoning grace produces all which the bible means 
by conversion, or being born of the Spirit ; it brings 
the mind from under the power and constitution of 
the earthly Adam, to live by faith on the Son of God, 
and to be ruled and governed, even in this life, in a 
great measure, by the law of the spirit of life, in Christ 
Jesus. It opens eternal things to our view and con- 
templation ; it brings heaven into the soul, and clothes 
the man in his right mind ; it inspires the soul with di- 
vine meekness and boldness, at the same time. It 
was this that enabled the apostles of our Lord to 
preach the gospel, in defiance of the rage of their 
enemies, and gave them immortal consolations in their 
sufferings for the cause of truth. It causes the chris- 
tian to love all God's rational creatures, and to wish 
their saving knowledge of the truth ; it produces good 
works in their purity, and all the morality worth the 
name is founded on it. Its divine power is stronger 
than any possible opposition, and the gates of hell 
cannot prevail against it ; it opens a door of everlast- 



136 



TREATISE 



mg hope, and conducts the soul, by way of the cross, 
to immortality and eternal life. This dispensation ot 
atonement is manifested through Christ, for the rec- 
onciliation of all things to God, in his glorious kingdom 
of holiness and happiness. 

In this general view of atonement, we come to our 
last inquiry proposed in this treatise, viz. 

The Consequences of Atonement to Mankind. 

In this last inquiry, we must be a little more lengthy, 
than in either of the former, but we hope not too te- 
dious. What we shall contend for, as the consequen- 
ces of atonement, is the universal holiness and hap- 
piness of 'mankind, in the final issue of the Redeemer's 
process. 

Before we proceed to notice the direct proofs of the 
doctrine of the final holiness and happiness of all men ? 
we shall notice some opposing doctrines and argu- 
ments, and endeavour to obviate them by scripture 
and reason. 

The first that we notice, is found in a proposition 
frequently stated, by modern divines, thus, " God, in 
the great and infinite plan of moral government, con- 
sults the greatest possible good to the whole system ; 
and in order for the greatest possible happiness to be 
produced, it was necessary, that some of Gods ration- 
al creatures should be eternally miserable : Agreeably 
to which, all men cannot be saved." This is the only 
ground, on which an objection can be stated against 
universal holiness and happiness, while we admit the 
existence of an Infinite Supreme. 

We cannot go into an examination of any authori- 
ties, on which the above statement is supposed to 



ON ATONEMENT. 



137 



stand ; for we know of none : All we can do, is to ex- 
amine the statement itself. It is argued, agreeably to 
this proposition, that the infinite and inconceivable 
miseries of the wicked, in the world to come, will en- 
hance the happiness of the glorified in heaven. 

Against these statements we argue, if, in order for 
the greatest possible happiness to exist, the greatest 
possible misery must, also exist, we wish to reverse 
the subject : Then the proposition would stand thus, 
in order for the greatest possible evil to exist, the 
greatest possible good must exist. Then, if God, in 
his universal plan, has produced as much good as was 
possible, he has also produced as much evil as possi- 
ble, which renders the statement that he consulted 
the greatest possible evil, as just, as that he consulted 
the greatest possible good. Of course, there is no 
more propriety in calling him good, than there is in 
calling him bad ! 

If it be said we carry this evil, or misery, too far, 
even beyond our opponent's meaning, we will endeav- 
or to show him, according to his own statement, that 
we do not. He says, every degree of misery in hell, 
will produce many degrees of happinesss in heaven ; 
if so, if the wretched be not made as miserable as pos- 
sible, the blessed cannot be made as happy as possible ; 
if they are not made as happy as possible, they must 
experience some want ; and, of course, some misery 
themselves. On the other hand, if the wretched be 
not as miserable as possible, they must have in posses 
sion some remaining convenience : Then, neither the 
greatest possible happiness, nor the greatest possible 
misery is produced. 

Almighty God being put to the necessity of making 
some of his rational offspring eternally miserable, in 
12* 



138 



TREATISE 



order to make the rest forever happy, may be repre- 
sented by a parent who has ten children ; but only 
provisions enough to preserve the lives of five until he 
can get more. In this awful dilemma, he sits down 
to consult the greatest possible good; says to him- 
self, if I divide my provisions equally among my chil- 
dren, all must surely starve to death ; but by neglect- 
ing five, I can save the lives of the other five, which he 
finally concludes to do. But we ask the rational, we peti- 
tion the reasonable, we request the impartial to guess the 
feelings of a father, on such an occasion ! Before 
him, are ten children, all in the image of himself; he 
sees his own eyes roll in their heads, hears his own 
voice on their tongues, while his own blood frolics 
through their veins ; how could he make the division ? 
how could he decide on one, for a victim ? Would he 
not rather give his own flesh to be their meat, and his 
own blood to be their drink, and fervently pray for 
plenty ! But is the Almighty poor ? Has he not enough 
and to spare ? When the prodigal came home, did the 
father turn away his brother, so that he might have a 
plenty for him ? Is there not fulness enough in God to sat- 
isfy the wants of all his creatures ? Why the necessity 
then, of making some miserable eternally ? Our oppo- 
nent will say, the blessed are happified, in consequence 
of the misery of the wretched. But what reason can be 
given for such an idea ? How do we look onaperson^ 
in this world, who manifests joy and happiness in the 
misery of one of his fellow creatures ? Do we say, he 
manifests a godlike disposition ? Surely, no. From 
whence came charity ; from heaven. If souls in hea- 
ven possess it, they cannot be happy, in consequence 
of the misery of any rational being. 

Again, if a soul in heaven derive happiness, from 



ON ATONEMENT. 



139 



seeing, say one half, or two thirds, of the human race 
in misery, would he not yet enjoy more, providing the 
whole, except himself, were in the same torment? If 
it be granted that he would, then, in order for a soul 
to be made as happy as possible, the whole human 
race, except that one, must be endlessly as miserable 
as possible ! If it be argued, that it is not the number 
or multitudes of individuals who are made miserable, 
that thus constitutes or enhances the happiness of the 
blessed, but that it is the nature, justice and intense- 
ness of this misery, which is necessary for the above 
purpose, it makes it very plain, that the eternal mise- 
ry of one would produce as much good, as of ten thou- 
sand or more. 

We have now got so far, even on our opponent's 
ground, as to see, that there is no need of more than 
one soul's being endlessly miserable ; and it still fur- 
ther appears to me, that the misery of one may be dis- 
pensed with, without departing from what my oppo- 
nent has acknowledged ; and that, by letting each in- 
dividual of the human race, for a moment, or any lim- 
ited time, experience the nature of the misery contend- 
ed for ; and then giving them a memory to retain it 
fresh in mind forever ; this must of necessity produce 
the effect as well, and without the expense of a single 
soul. We do not think it would absolutely require om- 
niscient wisdom to concert a better plan than the one 
we are opposing. 

Suppose we alter the circumstance of the father and 
his ten children: Suppose the father has provisions 
enough for the whole, and his object, in the bestowing 
of it upon them, is to cause the greatest possible hap- 
pinesss among his children. Which way would good 
sense and parental affection choose, either to feed five 



140 



TREATISE 



to the full, and starve the rest to death, that their dy- 
ing groans might give the others a better appetite, 
and their food a good relish, or to let them all be hungry 
enough to relish their food well, and all alike partake 
of it? 

We will take notice of a certain passage of scrip- 
ture in this place, which some have endeavored to ac- 
commodate to the argument which we are disputing ; 
see Rev. xiv. 10 ; 11. " The same shall drink of the 
wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out with- 
out mixture into the cup of his indignation ; and he 
shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the pre- 
sence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the 
Lamb : and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up 
forever and ever : and they have no rest day nor night 
who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever 
receiveth the mark of his name." It is not because 
we are afraid of wounding this beast, or of affronting 
its rider, that we do not enter into a particular explana- 
tion of the passage recited ; but because it deserves 
the labor of more time than we have now to spare. How- 
ever, the idea of my opponent is easily refuted ; and 
this is as much as the reader ought to expect, in this 
work. The common idea is, that the punishment 
here spoken of, is altogether in eternity, and not in 
this world of mortality ; that it being in the presence 
of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb, 
it indicates that it affords pleasure in those heavenly 
mansions where they dwell. 

First, we request the reader to observe, that the 
verbs, ascendeth, have, worship, and receiveth, are all 
in the same tense, which at least favors the idea, that 
the sulphurous smoke of this torment ascendeth up, at 
the same time that the tormented worship the beast. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



141 



If the apocalyptical beast be worshipped to an endless 
eternity, it follows, that his worshippers will be tor- 
mented as long. Until it is proved, that some will 
worship this beast, in another world, or endlessly, it 
cannot be proved from this passage, that any will be 
tormented, in another world, or endlessly. It is said, 
in the text, that, the worshippers of the beast have no 
rest day nor night. If it can be proved, that day and 
night are reckoned in another world, or in eternity, 
our opponent has better ground for his argument than 
we think he has. 

This beast, undoubtedly, is Antichrist ; the worship- 
pers of the beast are apostatized christians of all de- 
nominations, since the christian apostacy. They have 
always been in wars and commotions, and have had no 
rest ; and as for their being tormented, in all their pub- 
lic worship, with fire and brimstone, no argument is 
necessary to make it obvious. 

Another objection, which has often been stated 
against the salvation of all men, stands in a pretended 
axiom, viz. " A God all mercy is a God unjust." 
The force of this pretended axiom, as used against the 
salvation of all men, is, if God should do justly, by all 
men, he would be an unmerciful being ; or if he 
should show mercy to all men, he would be an unjust 
being. There is nothing self-evident in this axiom, 
that we can see, but its own want of propriety ; it 
represents justice and mercy at an eternal variance. 
According to this axiom, and the argument deducible 
from it, justice may be compared to a monstrous 
wolf in pursuit of a number of lambs, and mercy to 
a shepherd, who is obliged to give up a large number 
of them, to gorge his omnivorous appetite, while he 
makes off with the rest. 



142 



TREATISE 



We have, already, sufficiently refuted the idea of 
justice requiring the endless misery of the creature ; 
and, until that notion can be supported by scripture, 
or reason, an objection against the salvation of all 
men, cannot be stated, from the nature of justice. We 
have, also, shewed, that, in order for justice to require 
the endless misery of any moral being, it must, of ne- 
cessity, require the endless continuance of sin; than 
which, nothing is more absurd. Again, it is objected, 
as many are going out of this world daily, in a state of 
sinfulness and unreconciliation to God, and there be- 
ing no alteration in the soul, for the better, after it 
leaves this natural life, millions must be miserable, as 
long as God exists. The force of this objection stands 
on the supposition, that there is no alteration for the 
better, after death. Could this supposition be prov- 
ed, we grant it would substantiate a formidable, and 
(we think) an unanswerable objection against the fi- 
nal holiness and happiness of all men. We have of- 
ten heard the objection made, but never heard an 
evidence brought from scripture, or reason, to sup- 
port the declaration. Divines being sensible of the 
want of scripture, to support this (their) supposition, 
have, very liberally, been at the expense of making 
some ; and the notable passage which they have coin- 
ed, and brought into very frequent use, is not to be 
found in the scriptures of the Old, or New Testament ; 
but is frequently to be heard from the pulpit, read in 
many of their writings, and recited by many of their 
adherents. It is as follows : " As the tree falls, so it 
lies ; as death leaves us, so judgment will find us" 
We shall not contend about a different explanation 
of this addition to the scriptures, from the usual one ; 
but will only say, if the thing, which our opponents 



ON ATONEMENT. 



143 



would prove by it, be true, viz. that souls cannot be 
altered for the better, after death, all our christian peo- 
ple must remain eternally as unsanctified, as they are 
in this world of infirmities. 

Again, many contend, that God deals with mankind 
as moral agents ; that he sets life and death before 
us, and leaves us to make our own choice, and to fare 
accordingly: That, a& our eternal state depends on 
what use we make of our agency, millions will prove 
rebellious, and, therefore, miss of salvation. But we 
query, if one soul can obtain salvation, on the princi- 
ple of moral agency, why another cannot, as well ? If 
it be granted he can, we ask again, why all men can-* 
not as well as any ? If it still be granted, we say, a,s 
we have before said, that which can be done may be 
done ; therefore, the objection fails. But the objector will 
say, it renders universal salvation uncertain ; we an- 
swer, no more than it renders universal damnation cer- 
tain : All may be lost, forever, as well as one ; there- 
fore, our opponent's hopes are subject to the same 
shipwreck, to which he would expose ours. We 
would further inquire, if God deal with man upon a 
system of moral agency, is it God's revealed will, that 
all men should be saved, agreeably to their agency ? 
If it be granted that it is, we further inquire, whether 
God's will, in the moral agency of man, will be eter- 
nally frustrated ? If not, no objection stands against 
universalism ; but the proposition, on which our oppo- 
nent endeavors to substantiate an objection, favors the 
doctrine, as far as it goes. 

In our observations on the liberty of will, we have 
given some of our ideas concerning agency, as it is 
generally understood ; but moral agency may be very 
differently understood, by different persons. If, by 



144 



TREATISE 



moral agency, be meant an ability to love an object, 
or objects, which appear agreeable, we have no objec- 
tions to make ; but if it mean an ability to hate that 
which appears agreeable and to love that which ad- 
pears disagreeable, we contend, no such agency exists, 
in any being within the compass of our knowledge. 
It is certainly reasonable to suppose, that all the agen- 
cy possessed by man, was given him by his Maker; 
and that, when God gave him this agency, it was for 
a certain purpose, which purpose must, finally, be 
every way answered, providing God be infinitely wise. 
We cannot but think it incorrect, to suppose, that 
God ever gave any creature agency to perform what 
he never intended should be done. — Then, if any soul 
be made endlessly miserable, by its agency, it follows, 
that God gave that soul this agency for that unhappy 
purpose ; and if any be saved, by their agency, God 
gave them their agency, for that blessed end. If any 
wish to make a different use of agency, let them state 
fairly, that God gave man an agency, intending man^s 
eternal salvation thereby ; but man makes a different 
use of his agency, from what God intended, where- 
by the gracious designs of Deity are forever lost ! 

If our opponent will not fix his agency on some 
of the above noted principles as it respects the issue 
of the argument, we are sure he can do nothing 
with it to any effect. If agency be stated on the 
principle of God's intending the creature's salvation, 
by it, and it be granted, that his will, in the affair, 
will be done, it is an acknowledgment of the doctrine 
for which we contend. But if it be stated, that, al- 
though God gave man his agency, for the glorious 
purpose of his endless felicity, yet his purpose may 
fail ; could this statement be proved true, it would not 



ON ATONEMENT. 



14b 



only refute universal salvation, but every thing else, as 
being a divine system, on which we may, with any 
confidence, depend. 

One of the objections, on which the enemies of 
universal holiness and happiness put much depend- 
ance, and which they frequently urge against the 
doctrine is stated from the force of unlimited, words, 
as they find a few of them in scripture applied to the 
misery of the wicked. The force of this objection, 
we remove, by proving, that unlimited words are ap- 
plied to things and events which are not strictly eter- 
nal or endless ; and surely, the candid reader will 
acknowledge this way of reasoning is just, and by no 
means evasive. We shall not labor this point largely, 
for it has been done faithfully by an able author, whose 
works are among us. We will only introduce a few 
scriptures, and make some observations on them, for 
the benefit of those of our readers who have not seen 
the masterly work referred to. See Gen. xvii. 7, 8. 
" And I will establish my covenant between me and 
thee, and thy seed after thee in their generations, for 
an everlasting covenant ; to be a God unto thee, and 
thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and 
to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a 
stranger, all the land of Canaan for an everlasting pos- 
session ; and I will be their God." Verse 13. " He 
that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with 
thy money, must needs be circumcised ; and my cove- 
nant shall be in your flesh, for an everlasting cove- 
nant." In the above passage, the land of Canaan is 
called an everlasting possession. Will our opponent 
contend the word everlasting here means an endless 
duration ? Will he contend, that Abraham now pos- 
sesses the land wherein he was then a stranger? or 
13 



146 



TREATISE 



that his seed do, or will, possess that land as long as 
God exists ? If not, then the objection is given up. 

Again, the covenant of circumcision of the flesh 
is called an everlasting covenant. Will the objector 
contend, that the covenant of circumcision in the flesh 
is now in force, and that it will remain in force as long 
as God exists ? It is evident, from scripture, that these 
ordinances and this covenant are removed, and suc- 
ceeded by a covenant which is called a better one ; see 
Heb. viii. 6, 7, 8. " But now hath he obtained a more 
excellent ministry, by how much also he is the Medi- 
ator of a better covenant, which was established upon 
better promises. For if that first covenant had been 
faultless, then should no place have been sought for 
the second. For finding fault with them, he saith, be- 
hold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make 
a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the 
house of Judah." Chap. ix. 10, the apostle argues, 
that the ordinances of the first covenant were impos- 
ed on the people until the time of reformation. Gen, 
xlviii. 3, 4. " And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Al- 
mighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Ca- 
naan, and blessed me ; and said unto me, behold ? 
I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I 
will make thee a multitude of people ; and will give 
this land to thy seed after thee, for an everlasting 
possession." And he further s&id, in the blessing of 
Joseph, c The blessings of thy father have prevailed 
above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost 
bounds of the everlasting hills. Exod. xl. 15. " And 
thou shalt anoint them (Aaron's sons) as thou anoint- 
ed their father, that they may minister unto me in the 
priest's office ; for their anointing shall surely be an 
everlasting priesthood throughout their generations." 



ON ATONEMENT. 



147 



Lev. xvi. 34. u And this shall be an everlasting 
statute unto you, to make an atonement for the chil- 
dren of Israel, for all their sins once a year ; and he did 
as the Lord commanded Moses." The reader may 
learn the abolishment of the priesthood, that is here 
called an everlasting priesthood, from Heb. vii. 11, 12. 
u If, therefore, perfection were by the Levitical priest- 
hood, (for under it the people received the law) what 
further need was there that another priest should rise 
after the order of Melchisedec and not be called after 
the order of Aaron ? For the priesthood being chang- 
ed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law." 
Jonah ii. 6. "I went down to the bottom of the 
mountain ; the earth with her bars w r as about me 
forever : yet hast thou brought up my life from cor- 
ruption, O Lord my God." Many more passages 
might be quoted, to clear this point of argument, if 
more were necessary ; but depending some, as we 
ought to, on the candor of our reader, we forbear to 
be tedious. 

In the next place, we will take notice of a number 
of scriptures in connexion, all of which have been erre- 
neously applied to the future and endless misery of man- 
kind. See Mai. iv. 1. " For behold, the day cometh 
that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and 
all that do wickedly, shall be stubble, and the day that 
cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, 
that it shall leave them neither root nor branch." 
Matt. iii. 10. " And now also the axe is laid unto the 
root of the trees : therefore, every tree that bringeth 
not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the 
fire." Verse 12. " Whose fan is in his hand and he 
will thoroughly purge his floor , and gather his wheat 
into his garner, but the chaff he will burn with un- 



148 



TREATISE 



quenchable fire." Chap. v. 29, 30. " And if thy 
right eye offend the, pluck it out and cast it from 
thee ; for it is profitable for thee, that one of thy mem- 
bers should perish, and not that thy whole body should 
be cast into hell." Chap. xiii. 30. " Let both grow 
together until the time of harvest ; and in the time of 
harvest, I will say unto the reapers, gather ye togeth- 
er, first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn 
them ; but gather the wheat into my barn." The 
whole of the 25th, which is too lengthy to be written 
at large. Thess. i. 7, 8, 9. " And to you who are 
troubled, rest with us ; when the Lord Jesus shall be 
revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in a 
flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not 
God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus 
Christ ; who shall be punished with everlasting destruc- 
tion from the presence of the Lord and from the glory 
ot his power." There are a number more scriptures 
of the like nature of the above quoted, to which we 
should be glad to attend, were it not for swelling this 
work too large. We will, however, after we have an- 
swered these in their order, take into consideration 
some others of a different kind. Those which we 
have quoted, respect that dispensation which is repre- 
sented by fire. Therefore in all the passages recited, 
it is evident the same fire is intended. " For be- 
hold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven." 
In this same chapter, this day is called the great and 
dreadful day of the Lord, who promised to send Eli- 
jah the prophet before that day come, whose business 
should be to turn the hearts of the fathers, to the chil- 
dren, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, 
lest the J-iOid should smite the earth with a curse. 
We inquire, first, concerning the coming of this 



ON ATONEMENT. 



149 



prophet, in order to fix on a time for the commence 
ment of this day of the Lord. That Elijah and Elias 
are the same, in scripture, no doubt will be entertain- 
ed. Then turn to Matt. xvii. 12, 13. "But I say 
unto you, that Elias is come already, and they knew 
him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they list- 
ed ; likewise, shall also the Son of man suffer of them. 
Then the disciples understood that he spake unto 
them of John the baptist." By this scripture it ap- 
pears, that the promise of the coming of Elijah the 
prophet, was fulfilled by the coming of John the bap- 
tist, who came in the spirit and power of Elias. 

This evidently justifies the belief that the great and 
dreadful day of the Lord, to which the prophet alluded 
would soon follow the coming of John the baptist. 
Agreeably to this fact we find all which is written in 
the New Testament on the same subject. By a care- 
ful attention to the instructions of Jesus, we shall find 
that all those scriptures were fulfilled in the generation 
in which he lived in the flesh. Matt. xvi. 27, 28. 
For the son of man shall come in the glory of his 
c Father, with his angels ; and then he shall reward ev- 
ery man according to his works. Verily I say unto 
you there be some standing here which shall not taste 
of death, till they see the son of man coming in his 
kingdom.' Respecting this passage we desire the 
reader to notice the following particulars ; 1st — Jesus 
speaks of his coming in the glory of his Father with 
his angels at some time then future. 2d. He is careful 
to state, as the principal fact communicated in this 
passage, that when he should so come as he had de- 
scribed, he would render unto every man according 
to his works. Here we have a statement of a certain 
time, which would be a day of Judgment, iu which 
13* 



150 



TREATISE 



every man would receive according to his works. 
This day of Judgment is unquestionably the day of 
judgment elsewhere spoken of in the teachings of Je- 
sus and his apostles. 3d. Jesus is careful to fix 
the time of this judgment, not to a day nor to an 
hour, but emphatically does he limit it within the life- 
time of some of those to whom he spake. Of this day 
of trial we read again Mark viii. 38 ; ix. 1. ' Whoso- 
ever, therefore, shall be ashamed of me and of my 
words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him 
also shall the son of man be ashamed, when he cometh 
in the glory of his Father, with the holy angels. 
And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that 
there be some standing here which shall not taste of 
death till they have seen the kingdom of God come 
with power. 5 Here we again request the reader to 
observe, that the same particulars, which were noticed 
in respect to the former passage, are found to be con- 
tained in this. Luke ix. 26, 27. £ For whosoever shall 
be ashamed of me, and of my words, of him shall the 
son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his 
own glory, and in his Father's and of the holy angels. 
But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here, 
which shall not taste of death till they see the king- 
dom of God. 5 What we desired the reader to ob- 
serve in the former passages, he will also notice in 
this . 

Should the objector contend, that the coming of 
Christ, in his glory, with his angels, to reward men ac- 
cording to their works, as set forth in the preceding 
passages, cannot be the same with his coming at the 
end of the world, of which mention is made in Matt, 
xxiv, we reply, by informing him that if he will so far 
divest himself of the prejudices of his education, as to 



ON ATONEMENT. 



151 



give this subject a candid investigation, we soberly 
believe that he will arrive at an entire conviction that 
the coming of Jesus at the end of the world, of which 
he speaks in Matt, xxiv, did correspond with his com- 
ing as expressed in those passages above quoted, and 
did take place in the generation in which he lived on 
the earth. 

But we deem it expedient to show that not only the 
coming of Christ, as pointed out in these scriptures, 
took place in that generation, but also that the ' great 
and dreadful day of the Lord ' which was to burn as 
an oven, by which all the c proud, yea, and all who 
did wickedly became stubble, also came in that genera- 
tion. And that this day was the end of the world, of 
which Jesus spake Matt. xxiv. Furthermore, that we 
have the following account of the same end of the 
world in Matt. xiii. 40, 42. As therefore the tares 
are gathered and burned in the fire ; so shall it be in 
the end of this world. The son of man shall send 
forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his king- 
dom all things that offend, and them which do iniqui- 
ty, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire ; there 
shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth ! And more- 
over that within the same specified period all the 
dreadful judgments which he denounced were ful- 
filled. 

Keep in mind how carefully Jesus stated, in the 
passages above quoted, that some of them to whom 
he spake should live to see the time of his coming 
with his angels to render unto every man according 
to his works, and pass to an examination of other pas- 
sages. Matt x. 23 6 But when they persecute you in 
this city, flee ye into another ; for verily, I say unto you, 
ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till 



152 



TREATISE 



the son of man be come.' Here take particular no- 
tice of the following circumstances. 1st. The divine 
master is giving his disciples special directions, in re- 
lation to the prudence which they would need to ex- 
ercise while accomplishing the labours to which he 
had appointed them. 2d. For a season this caution 
would be necessary on account of the persecutions to 
which the discipels would be exposed ; but they were 
encouraged to expect a change for their benefit, when 
Jesus should come, according to his promises. In 
support of this fact see Luke xxi. 28, 32. 6 And when 
these things begin to take place, then look up. and 
lift up your heads ; for your redemption draweth nigh. 
And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig 
tree and all the trees : when they now shoot forth, ye 
see and know of your own selves that summer is now 
nigh at hand. So likewise ye when ye see these 
things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of 
God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, this 
generation shall not pass away till all be fulfilled.' 
3d. The divine master certifies his disciples that they 
should not have past over the cities of Israel till he 
should come. This was fixing his coming within the 
time of their ministry. Look next at the war which 
Jesus denounced on his enemies, the Jqws as recorded 
Matt, xxiii. After a lengthy and a most severe an- 
nunciation of war on the scribes and pharisees, 
Jesus brings this last address to them to a close, as 
follows : c Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers 
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers ! how can ye 
escape the damnation of hell ? Wherefore, behold, I 
send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes ; 
and some of them ye shall kill and crucify ; and some 
of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and per- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



153 



secute them from city to city ; that upon you may 
come all the righteous blood, shed upon the earth, 
from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of 
Zacharias, son of Barathias, whom ye slew between 
the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, all 
these things shall come upon this generation. O Jeru- 
salem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and 
stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often 
would I have gathered thy children together even as 
a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings and ye 
would not ! Behold your house is left unto you des- 
olate. For I say unto you, ye shall not see me hence- 
forth, till ye shall say blessed is he that cometh in the 
name of the Lord.' Let the reader be careful to ob- 
serve that according to this passage the damnation of 
hell and all the war here denounced were to come on 
that people in that generation. 

After Jesus had finished this tremendous address 
which he delivered to the Jews, in their temple, the 
last time he spake there, we are informed chap. xxiv. 
1st. and 6th that ' Jesus went out and departed from the 
temple ; and his disciples came to him, for to show 
him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto 
them, see ye not all these things, Verily I say unto 
you there shall not be left here one stone upon anoth- 
er, that shall not be thrown down. This assurance 
which Jesus gave to his disciples, that of that beautiful 
temple not one stone should be left upon another that 
should not be thrown down, was in reference to what 
they had just heard him state in the temple concern- 
ing its desolation. ' And as he sat upon the mount of 
Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, 
tell us, when shall these things be ? and what shall 
be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of 



154 



TREATISE 



the world ?' Here be careful to observe that the things 
of which the disciples spake when they asked, when 
shall these things be ? were those things of which Jesus 
had just spoken in the temple. In his reply to the ques- 
tions which his disciples asked him, Jesus is careful to 
give clear and definite answers. He first warned them 
against being deceived by the many who would come 
in his name, and deceive many. Chap, xxiv, 6, &c. 
' And ye shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars : See 
that ye be not troubled ; for all these things must 
come to pass, but the end is not yet. It seems pro- 
per, in this place, to ask what Jesus meant by the end, 
which he said c is not yet.' Surely the true answer to 
this question is found in the questions which his dis- 
ciples asked him, to which he was then answering. 
The questions which they asked him were the follow- 
ing. 6 When shall these things be ? and what shall 
be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the 
world ?' It was the end of world which Jesus said 
in verse 6th, ' is not yet.' Jesus goes on to give further 
particulars concerning events which would come to 
pass before the end of the world ; and speaks of the 
rising of nation against nation, and kingdom against 
kingdom, and of earthquakes in diverse places. Also 
of the persecutions which the disciples should suffer ; 
but tells them verse 13, 6 He that shall endure unto 
the end, the same shi 11 be saved and then adds, 
c and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in 
all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then 
shall the end come.' That is the end of the world of 
which the disciples asked their Master. We have of- 
ten heard preachers attempt to describe the end of the 
world, and its attendant circumstances, with zeal and 
vehemency, in which they would speak of the dissolu- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



155 



tion of the earth, the dissolving of the sun, of the 
moon, and the stars ; of the resurrection of all the dead, 
and of their coming to judgment; of the august ap- 
pearance of Jesus surrounded with a multitude of th( 
heavenly hosts, who are to wait on him while he sits 
in judgment to decide the destinies of the whole hu- 
man family forever and ever. This scene they lay 
altogether in what they call eternity. Such being the 
views entertained by the objector, he feels confident 
that the coming of Christ, at the end of the world, 
could not have taken place in that generation. But 
we would respectfully invite him to attend to cer- 
tain descriptions which Jesus gave of the end of the 
world, and of certain circumstances which would at- 
tend it. He goes on thus : • When ye, therefore, shall 
see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Dan- 
iel the prophet, stand in the holy place (whoso read- 
eth let him understand) then let them which be in 
Judea flee into the mountains : let him which is on 
the housetop not come down to take any thing out of 
his house : neither let him which is in the field re- 
turn to take any thing out of his house. And wo unto 
them that are with child, and to them that give suck 
in those days ! But pray ye that your flight be not 
in the winter, neither on the sabbath day ! For there 
shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the 
beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall 
be. 5 Concerning this description let us carefully no- 
tice several particulars. 1st. Jesus gives his disciples 
to understand that at this end of the world they would 
see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel 
the prophet, stand in the holy place. If we turn to 
Daniel we may be satisfied whether the prophet spake 
of what would take place in this state of man's exist- 



156 



TREATISE 



etice, or in what is commonly called eternity. Se- 
Dan. ix, 26. And after threescore and two weeks 
shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the 
people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the 
city, and the sanctuary ; and the end thereof shall be 
with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations 
are determined.' Chap. xii. 11. ' And from the time 
that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the 
abomination that maketh desolate, set up, there shall 
be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.' Such 
descriptions may well apply to the calamitous wars 
which wasted the Jews, overthrew their city, and plant- 
ed the Roman standard in the temple of God, even 
in the holy place. But we hardly think our objector 
will be disposed to apply such representations to events 
which are to take place in a future state. 2dly. At 
the end of the world of which Jesus spake to his disci- 
ples, and when they should see the abomination of 
desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in 
the holy place, he told them who were in Judea to 
flee into the mountains. This advice was undoubted- 
ly very judicious, if the occasion of their flight was the 
dire calamity of war ; but if the occasion were the an- 
nihilation of the material universe, the resurrection of 
all the dead, and the assembling of the whole human 
race to the solemnites of what is called the eternal judg- 
ment, it is difficult to understand how security could 
be obtained by fleeing into the mountains. 3dly. Je- 
sus signified to his disciples that the end of the world 
would be a season of difficulty which would be aug- 
mented if it should happen in the winter or on the 
sabbath. These suggestions were very correct if they 
referred to temporal inconveniences ; but it would be 
difficult to understand how to apply them to scenes in 



ON ATONEMENT. 



157 



the invisible world. 4th. Jesus gave his disciples to 
understand that the troubles which would come on the 
people at the end of the world, would fall with pecu- 
liar inconvenience on such as should at that time be 
with child or should give suck to their infants. We 
have little doubt that our objector will see that these 
circumstances may apply much better to temporal in- 
conveniences endured by females, during the terrible 
storm of war and the conquest of their city, than to 
any event in eternity of which we read in the scrip- 
tures. 

That all these events, including the end of the 
world, the coming of the Son of man with his angels, 
&c, took place in the generation in which the Saviour 
lived on earth, we are fully certified by his own words 
which follow : verse 30, &c. c And then shall appear 
the sign of the Son of man in heaven : and then shall 
all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see 
the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with 
power and great glory. And he shall send his angels 
with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather 
together his elect from the four winds, and from one end 
of heaven to the other. Now learn a parable of the 
fig-tree ; when his branch is yet tender, and putteth 
forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh : so like- 
wise ye when ye, shall see all these things, know that 
it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, 
this generation shall not pass till all these things be 
fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my 
word shall not pass away.' 

It seems worthy of special notice, that in every in- 
stance, in which Jesus spake of his coming to judge 
men, and to reward them according to their works, he 
expresses himself with peculiar emphasis, in limiting 
14 



158 



TREATISE 



the time to the generation in which he lived. Matt, 
xvi.' 28. Verily I say unto you ' &c. Mark ix. 1, 
' Verily I say unto you/ &c. Luke ix, 27. ' But I tell 
you of a truth' &c. Matt. x. 23. 6 For Verily I say 
unto you/ &c. Luke xxi. 32, 6 Verily I say unto 
you,' &c. Matt, xxiii. 36. 'Verily I say unto you, 
< &c. xxiv. 34.' Verily I say unto you, this generation 
shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled.' We 
think we are safe in saying, that on no other one sub,- 
ject did Jesus express himself with more cautious em- 
phasis. Have we not then great reason to marvel that 
so many of those who are professed disciples of Jesus, 
and who profess to preach his word to the people, 
should ever have so misconstrued his testimony as to 
represent his coming with his angels to reward men is 
to take place in some time which is now future, and in 
another state of man's existence ? 

After Jesus had certified his disciples that all those 
events of which he spoke would take place in that 
generation, he proceeded to say to them, c But of that 
day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of 
heaven, but my Father only." And this circumstance 
he improved to show the necessity of due watchfulness 
in nis disciples, that they might avail themselves of 
the benefits of his instructions, and make their escape 
from those calamities which were fast approach- 
ing. In the latter part of this chapter he strictly 
warned them to be on their guard, and duly apprised 
them of the danger which awaited them should they 
so far relax in their watchings as to become conten- 
tious and to, eat and drink with the drunken, thinking 
that their Lord delayed his coming, assuring them that 
should any be found of this description, the J^ord of 
such a servant would come in a day when he looked 



©N ATONEMENT. 



159 



not for him, and in an hour that he would not be aware 
of, and would cut him asunder, and appoint him his 
portion with the hypocrites; where there should be 
weeping and gnashing of teeth. As Jesus had, in 
hearing of his disciples, just delivered his last address to 
the scribes and pharisees, in the temple, and as he had 
denounced on them the most tremendous judgments, 
calling them hypocrites, which epithet he often repeat- 
ed in that discourse, he now informs his disciples, be- 
ing alone with them, that if any of them should so far 
apostatize as to conform their lives to the sinfulness 
of that wicked and perverse generation, they would of 
course fall into the same condemnation, which he had 
just denounced on those whom he called hypocrites, 
and would be subjected to the same awful calamities. 
This, Jesus represented by the two following parables ; 
that of the ten virgins, and that of the talents. Let it 
be duly observed, that the parables recorded in the 
xxv chapter were all designed to represent the things 
which are stated in the xxiv. — -The division of chapters 
very frequently disjoins a well connected discourse in 
such an abrupt manner as to entirely obscure the sense ; 
unless the reader is careful, by disregarding this arbi- 
trary division, to preserve the connexion by reading 
directly on. When Jesus had stated to his disciples 
the danger they would expose themselves tQ, by get- 
ting off their guard, as has been noticed, he added, 
6 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten 
virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet 
the bridegroom.' In order to preserve the connexion 
in this reading, we ask the question when did Jesus 
mean that the kingdom of heaven should be liken- 
ed unto ten virgins ? He says, Then. And this 
word then begins the chapter. Suppose a person sits 



160 



TREATIS 



down to read a chapter in the New Testament; 
and without paying any attention to any thing that 
is said in the twenty fourth chapter, begins the 
twenty fifth and reads it through, how could he un- 
derstand what the three parables, which occupy the 
whole chapter, were designed to represent ? He 
would know nothing about the subjects for the illustra- 
tion of which the parables were spoken. He would 
have no idea concerning the time to which the first 
word in the chapter referred. But by looking back 
we find that the word then refers to the time just men- 
tioned, thus : ' The Lord of that servant shall come 
in a day when he looketh not for him, &c. But here 
we are not told when that day would be. We must 
then look back still farther. See verse 44. 6 There- 
fore be ye also ready ; for in such an hour as ye think 
not, the Son of man cometh.' This does not fix the 
time. The fact is, neither that day nor that hour are 
designated in the whole discourse. See verse 36 &c. 
f But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not 
the angels of heaven, but my Father only." 'But of 
that day and hour. 5 What day and hour ? That day 
must refer to some time of which notice had been ta- 
ken before. Look back then to the two preceding 
verses Verily I say unto you, this generation shall 
not pass till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and 
earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass 
away. By this method, we arrive at the fact, that Je- 
sus spake of no time, of no day nor hour in all that fol- 
lows these last words quoted, that was not limited to 
that generation. 

By being thus cautious we find our subject all laid 
open as clearly as the sun shines. The parable of the 
ten virgins, and also that of the talents were designed 



OJS ATONEMkNT 



(61 



to set forth what the divine teacher had just stated re- 
specting how it would fare with those who were his 
professed disciples, at the time when Jerusalem should 
be destroyed by the Romans. With this fact in the 
mind read the last paragraph of the twenty fourth 
chapter, and the two first of the twenty fifth, in con- 
nexion. 

The nuptial ceremonies among the Jews were fa- 
miliar to the disciples of Jesus ; and so was the cus- 
tom of letting money at interest. These two customs 
he used to impress on their minds the necessity of be- 
ing on their guard that they might be prepared for the 
occasion of their Lord's coming ; and also duly to im- 
prove the gifts which he had bestowed on them, that 
at his coming they might be able to present him with 
suitable improvements. 

If we duly consider what we have here collected 
from the directions which Jesus gave to his disciples, 
and remember that he told them, as has been noticed, 
Matt. x. 23. c But when they persecute you in this 
city, flee ye into another ; for verily I say unto you, 
ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till 
the son of man be come, 5 we must not only feel a full 
conviction that the common use which has been made 
of these parables of the virgins and the talents is al- 
together foreign from the Saviour's meaning, but we 
must also feel no small surprise at such an egregious 
error. 

We come now to notice the parable of the sheep 
and goats. Immediately following the conclusion of 
the parable of the talents, Jesus says ; < When the Son 
of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy an- 
gels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his 
glory,'&c. Then follows an account of the judgment. 



162 



TREATISE 



Here let it be observed, that the Saviour, having in- 
structed his disciples respecting what he should re- 
quire of them, and how they would be rewarded for 
their faithfulness, or punished for their delinquency, 
proceeds to represent the great distinction, which 
would, at the same time, be made between these who 
should treat them kindly, and those who should neg- 
lect so to do. 

Let us be duly cautious concerning the time of 
the coming of the Son of man, in his glory, and with 
his angels. In this parable he gives no intimation 
when this coming would take place, or when it ought 
to be expected. The reason why he did not mention 
the time is the same for which he did not point out the 
day nor hour of his coming in the preceding con- 
text. The reason, in all these cases, why he did not 
mention the particular time, was because he had ex- 
plicitly stated that his coming with his angels would 
certainly be in that generation ; but that of the day 
and the hour none but his Father in heaven knew. 
The reader is here requested to keep in mind all those 
passages which have been quoted, which speak of the 
coming of Jesus with his angels, &c, and to remember 
that they all expressly state that his coming would be 
during that generation. 

It is contended by some that if the former parables 
in this twenty fifth chapter of Matthew, refer to the 
the time of that generation, this of the sheep and 
goats refers to a general judgment, in the future state, 
after the material universe is dissolved, and all man- 
kind are raised into an immortal state. But surely 
there is not the least authority for this conclusion. 
There is nothing hinted respecting the dissolution of 
the material universe ; not a word said about the res- 
urrection of the dead. 



163 



In this parable of the sheep and goats we have the 
following particulars represented. 1st. The King, 
who sits as judge. 2d. Two classes, one on the right 
hand of the King, the other on his left. These two 
classes are separated one from the other, and they are 
differently treated on account of the difference there was 
in their conduct to another, or a third class. This 
third class were the disciples of Jesus, to whom he 
spake the parable ; and whom he calls his brethren. 
By this parable Jesus seemed to say to his disciples : 
Brethren, as you travel from city to city to publish the 
gospel of my kingdom, in my name, I shall regard 
every act of kindness and hospitality done to you, by 
people where you labor, as done to myself; and also 
all the cold he«irted neglect which shall mark the con- 
duct of people towards you, I shall consider as done 
to me. In agreement with this see Matt. x. 40, 42. 
4 He that receiveth you, receiveth me ; and he that 
receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me. He that 
receiveth a prophet, in the name of a prophet, shall 
receive a prophet's reward : and he that receiveth a 
righteous man, in the name of a righteous man 
shall receive a righteous man's reward. And who- 
soever shall give to drink unto one of these little 
ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a 
disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise 
lose his reward." Verses 12, 15. ' And when ye 
come into an house, salute it. And if the house be 
worthy, let your peace come upon it : but if it be not 
worthy, let you peace return to you. And whosoever 
shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye 
depart out of that house or city shake off the dust of 
your feet. Verily I say unto you, it shall be more 
tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the 
day of judgment, than for that city.' 



164 



TRE ATI fe k 



After having satisfied our minds respecting the time 
of the coming of the Son of man to judge and re 
ward men according to their works, and being assured 
that that event took place when Jerusalem was de- 
stroyed, and the Jews dispersed ; it remains an easy 
task to settle the question respecting the meaning and 
fulfilment of all the passages in the New Testament 
which speak of that judgment, and the awful calami- 
ties which fell on that people. But we must always 
keep in mind the fact that all those scriptures were 
fulfilled in that generation in which Jesus and his dis- 
ciples lived. 

Let us notice the following passages in connexion, 
as they evidently belong to the same subject. Matt, 
iii. 10. ' And now also the axe is laid at the root of 
the trees : therefore, every tree that bringeth not forth 
good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire.' 
Verse 12, ' Whose fan is in his hand, and he will 
thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into 
his garner, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable 
fire." Chap. v. 29, 30. And if thy right eye offend 
thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee ; for it is pro- 
fitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, 
and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." 
Chap. xiii. 30. Let both grow together until the har- 
vest ; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reap- 
ers gather ye together first the tares, and bind them 
in bundles to burn them ; but gather the wheat into 
my barn. 5 2d Thess. i. 7, 10. 6 And to you who are 
troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be 
revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flam- 
ing fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God 
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ ; 
who shall be punished with everlasting destruction 
from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of 



ON ATONEMEM. 



165 



his power ; when he shall come to be glorified in his 
saints, and to be admired, in all them that believe 
(because our testimony among you was believed,) in 
that day.' That these and some other passages all 
refer to the same time and events as are pointed out 
in Matt. 24, and 25, which we have noticed, there 
will be no doubts with any. Those who are opposed 
to our views apply them all to a future state of pun- 
ishment. It is therefore unnecessary to explain them 
separately. It is evident that the burning of the chaff, 
as expressed Matt. iii. 12, and the being cast into 
hell, expressed chap. v. 30, and the burning of the tares, 
of which we read chap, xiii, 30 ; and the being punished 
with everlasting destruction, recorded 2d. Thess. i. 9, 
all mean the same thing. It is also evident that the 
end of the world, of which we read in Matt, xx, 24th, 
which Jesus carefully and emphatically confined 
to the generation in which he lived, as we have fully 
seen, and the end of the world of which he spake in his 
exposition of the parable of the tares, see Matt. xiii. 
40, 42, therefore tares are gathered and burned in 
the fire ; so shall it be in the end of this world. The 
Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall 
gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and 
them that do iniquity, and shall cast them into a fur- 
nace, of fire ; there shall be wailing and gnashing of 
teeth.' 

The reader may be at a loss to know why Jesus 
should call the time of his coming to destroy Jerusa- 
lem, the end of the world.' We say then it was be- 
cause it was the end of the Jewish state and polity ; 
and it was the commencement of a new era and a 
new order of things. The word, rendered world, 
should have been rendered age. See Heb. ix. 26. 
6 But now once, in the end of the world, hath he ap- 



Ib6 TREATISE 

peared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself/ 
Also 1 Cor. x. 11. 1 Now all these things happened 
unto them for ensamples ; and they are written for our 
admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are 
come. 5 Such an end of the world as our preachers 
are talking of, and which thsy use to frighten people, 
is now here spoken of in the scriptures. 

That it was natural for Jesus to represent the sore 
afflictions, which he saw coming on the house of Israel, 
by everlasting fire, by unquenchable fire, and by hell 
fire, we learn by referring to the language used to 
represent the same things in the Old Testament. See 
Ezekiel xxii. 18, 22. ' Son of man, the house of Israel 
is to me become dross ; all they are brass, and tin, and 
iron, and lead in the midst of the furnace ; they are 
even the dross of silver. Therefore saith the Lord 
God, because ye are all become dross, behold, there- 
fore, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 
As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead 
and tin into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire 
upon it, to melt it ; so will I gather you in my anger 
and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt 
you. Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in 
the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the 
midst thereof. As silver is melted in the midst of the 
furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof ; 
and ye shall know that I the Lord have poured out my 
fury upon you.' Chap. xxi. 30, 31, 32. < Shall I 
cause it to return into his sheath ? I will judge thee 
in the place where thou wast created, in the land of 
thy nativity. And I will pour out mine indignation 
upon thee ; I will blow against thee in the fire of my 
wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men 
and skilful to destroy. Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire ; 



ON ATONEMENT. 



167 



thy blood shall be in the midst of the land ; tho i shalt 
oe no more remembered ; for I the Lord have spoken 
it.' Isaiah ix. 19. 6 Through the wrath of the Lord 
of hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be 
as the fuel of the fire ; no man shall spare his brother. 5 
In bringing the subject of those scriptures, which 
speak of consuming the wicked by fire, to a close, we 
judge it proper to notice that not only are those aw- 
ful judgments, which we have noticed, represented by 
fire ; but fire also is used to represent the purifying 
power of divine truth. And it is evident that both these 
uses of fire are embraced in those scriptures which we 
have passed in review. The following passage seems 
to present both these ideas: Mai. iii. 1,3. 'Behold, 
I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the 
way before me, and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall 
suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of 
the covenant whom ye delight in : behold, he shall 
come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide 
the day of his coming ? And who shall stand when 
he appeareth ? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like 
fuller's soap. And he shall sit as a refiner and puri- 
fier of silver ; and he shall purify the sons of Levi, 
and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer 
unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.' The 
same things appear in the passage in the 3d. of Matt, 
which has been noticed. Verses 10, 11, 12. ' And 
now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees ; 
Therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good 
fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire. I indeed 
baptize you with water unto repentance ; but he that 
cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am 
not worthy to bear ; he shall baptize you with the 
Holy Ghost and with fire ; whose fan is in his hand, 



168 



TREATISE 



and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather nis 
wheat into his garner ; but he will burn up the chaff 
with unquenchable fire.' Isaiah iv. 4. ' When the 
Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters 
of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem 
from the midst thereof, by the spirit of burning.' 
The design and end of the divine judgments is clearly 
expressed by this prophet, Chap, xxvii. 9. " By this, 
therefore, shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged ; and 
this is all the fruit to take away his sin. 5 

There is, perhaps, no passage of scripture on which 
more dependence is placed for proof positive of a state 
of punishment in a future world, and to all eternity, 
than the following ; Luke xvi. last paragraph : 6 There 
was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple 
and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day : and 
there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was 
laid at his gate full of sores, and desiring to be fed 
with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table : 
moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. And it 
came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by 
the angels into Abraham's bosom. The rich man also 
died, and was buried : and in hell he lifted up his eyes, 
being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, andLaza- 
rus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abra- 
ham, have mercy on rne, and send Lazarus, that he may 
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue : 
for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, 
Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy 
good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things : but now 
he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And besides 
all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed : 
so that they which would pass from hence to you, 
cannot ; neither can they nass to us, that would come 



ON ATONEMENT. 



169 



from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, 
father, that thou wouldst send him to my father's 
house : for I have five brethren ; that he may testify 
unto them, lest they also come into this place of tor- 
ment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses 
and the prophets ; let them hear them. And he said, 
Nay, father Abraham : but if one went unto them from 
the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If 
they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will 
they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.* 

In this parable, our opposers contend, we have a 
very plain and literal account of the death of a rich 
man, and of his being in hell, after death ; and the 
death of a poor man, and his future happiness. 
It is contended by the most of those who oppose 
the doctrine which we endeavor to vindicate, that 
this paragraph ought to be taken and understood in 
its most literal sense, and that Christ did not intend it 
as a parable. Though we are very far from believing 
this paragraph to be a literal account, yet, we will admit 
it, for the better accommodation of the argument. For 
if we do not, but only give our opinion on the pas- 
sage, our opponent will contend,that the objection is 
not answered, as he rests it on the literality of the pas- 
sage. Admitting the account just as literal as our op- 
poser views it, is it possible for him to substantiate an 
objection against us, from it ? We think not ; for, 
were it possible to prove, that an individual, who died 
in the days of Noah, had continued, from that time 
until now, in a state of misery, it would have no force 
to prove, that such individual would be miserable a sin- 
gle year longer, much less, to prove he would be end- 
lessly so. Further, could it be proved, that a person, 
who recently died, would be in the worst of torments, 
for a million of years to come, it would fell infinitely 
15 



no 



TREATISE 



short of proving that he would suffer endlessly. If the 
suffering of a rational being, for atime, prove, that this 
being must be endlessly miserable, the proof stands 
against the whole family of Adam, not excepting Je- 
sus himself. If my opponent be under the necessity 
of giving me the argument, in this particular, which I 
know he must, then, what evidence has he left, in the 
scripture under consideration, to prove endless misery ? 
If it be urged against me, that the gulf, between Abra- 
ham and the rich man, was impassable, it proves no- 
thing, with regard to its duration. Let us now ex- 
amine the passage a little, taking notice of the common 
ideas of it. It is said, that the rich man lifted up his 
eyes in hell. Now it is believed and argued, that 
souls, in hell, are as destitute of any principle of good- 
ness, as the devil in which people believe ; that they 
are fully engaged in the devil's service, and opposed 
to any thing and all things which are favorable to the 
kingdom of the Saviour. This being the case, how 
is it that we have such an account of the prayer which 
the rich man made to his father Abraham, in fa- 
vor of his five brethren ? He seems to be anxious 
for their welfare, and desires that they might not 
come into such a place of torment as he was in. 
How would such a prayer please Beelzebub, the prince 
of devils ? Did I believe in such a being, according 
to the general idea which people have of him, I should 
suppose he would be very much alarmed on hearing 
such benevolent prayers made in his dark dominions ! 
The prayer seems to favor the plan of gospel grace, 
more than the vile purposes of Satan, though it did 
not seem to dictate the matter exactly according to the 
divine purpose. It is generally believed that the devil 



ON ATONEMENT. 



171 



is desirous of getting as many as possible into misery ; 
if so, and the rich man desired that his brethren might 
not come into that place of torment, let his reasons be 
what they might it is evident that his desires were op- 
posed to the devil's. " A kingdom, divided against it- 
self, cannot stand." Again, it is argued, by some, 
that those who are in heaven will rejoice, in conse- 
quence of the misery of those whom they see in tor- 
ment, as the justice of God will, by their torments, be 
made to appear more glorious than it otherwise could, 
which, by the way, answers the most fervent desires of 
Satan. This being granted, should those, who are in 
heaven, on seeing those in hell, who, in this w r orld, 
were their nearest connexions, feel the smallest regret, 
much more, desire to grant them assistance, it would 
be a complete violation of that justice which confined 
them there. But in our text, it is shown, that those, 
who are in Abraham's bosom, are desirous of going to 
the rich man, and their object is plainly seen, that it is 
to relieve him from his torments, see verse 26, " So 
that those who would pass from hence to you can- 
not." It is very evident that those, who were in 
Abraham's bosom, were desirous of assisting the rich 
man ; and according to the common idea, it must have 
been deemed a rebellion against the will and justice of 
God, in consequence of which, if the devil deserved to 
be cast out of heaven, for his disobedience, these un- 
doubtedly deserved the same condemnation ! If we 
look impartially into these things, it is easy to see, that 
something wrong has been entertained in the common 
idea. By a little attention to the introduction of this 
paragraph, the reader may easily see the whole was in- 
tended as a similitude, to show the adultery which the 
high priest would commit, in rejecting the gospel, and 



L72 



TREATISE 



endeavoring to obtain justification, by attending to 
the law m the letter, and also the situation of that 
part of Israel that was broken off through unbelief, 
which is represented by St. Paul, Rom. xi. 7, 10. 
6 What then ? Israel hath not obtained that which he 
seeketh for ; but the election hath obtained it, and the 
rest were blinded. (According as it is written, God 
hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they 
should not see, and ears that they should not hear,) 
unto this day. And David saith, let their table be 
made a snare, and a trap, and a stumbling-block,^ and 
a recompense unto them : let their eyes be darkened, 
that they may not see, and bow down their back al- 
way : See Matt. xxi. 43. ' Therefore say I unto you, 
the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and 
given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof/ 
How evidently this agrees with the words of Abraham 
to the rich man, in the parable ; ' Son, remember that 
in thy life time thou hadst thy good things, and like- 
wise Lazarus evil things : but now he is comforted, 
and thou art tormented. 5 Matt. xxi. 31. f Jesus 
saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, that the publi- 
cans and harlots go into the kingdom of God before 
you. 5 Acts xiii. 45, 47. ' But when the Jews saw 
the multitudes they were filled with envy, and spake 
against those things which were spoken by Paul, con- 
tradicting and blaspheming. Then Paul and Barnabas 
waxed bold, and said, it was necessary that the word 
of God should first have been spoken to you ; but see- 
ing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unwor- 
thy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles ; 
for so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have 
set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldst 
be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. 5 It seems. 



ON ATONEMENT. 173 

according to the scriptures, that it was so ordered, in 
the wisdom of God, that the Jews, who were his cho T 
sen people, should, through unbelief, be broken off 
from their own olive-tree, and that the Gentile church 
should be graffed in. See Rom. xi. 17, 24. This 
subject is, doubtless, that which the parable of the rich 
man and Lazarus was designed to represent. But that 
the Jews were broken off through unbelief, so that 
they were never to be graffed in again ; or that their 
fall was such as to preclude recovery is certainly very 
fully refuted by the Apostle of the Gentiles, in the 
chapter to which we have before alluded. See Rom. 
xi. verses 11, 12. c l say then, have they stumbled 
that they should fall ? God forbid ; but rather through 
their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to 
provoke them to jealousy, Now if the fall of them be 
the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them 
the riches of the Gentiles ; how much more their ful- 
ness.' Verse 15. 'For if the casting away of them 
be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiv- 
ing of them be but life from the dead ? See also the 
whole remainder of the chapter. But particularly no- 
tice verses 25, 26. ' For I would not, brethren, that 
ye should be ignorant of this mystery/ (lest ye should 
be wise in your own conceit) that blindness in part is 
happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be 
come in. And so all Israel shall be saved ; as it is 
written, there shall come out of Zion the deliverer, 
and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob ! Ob- 
serve how the following passages correspond; one 
from the parable, the other from the history of the 
fact : Abraham says, ' Besides all this, between us and 
you there is a great gulf fixed; so that they which 
would pass from hence to you cannot : neither can 
15* 



174 



TREATISE 



they pass to us that would come from thence.' f Blind- 
ness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of 
the Gentiles be come in.' This blindness which hap- 
pened to Israel constituted, between them and Abra- 
ham's faith called in the parable his bosom, an impass- 
able gulf. See John xii. 37. 41. c But though he had 
done so many miracles before them, yet they believed 
not on him; that the saying of Esaias the prophet 
might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath be- 
lieved our report ? And to whom hath the arm of the 
Lord been revealed ? Therefore they could not be- 
lieve, because that Esaias said again, he hath blinded 
their eyes, and hardened their heart, that they should 
not see with their eyes, nor understand with their 
heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. 
These things said Esaias when he saw his glory, and 
spake of him.' 

If our opposer contend that what we here call the par- 
able of the rich man and Lazarus, ought not to be called 
a parable, because it is not so called where it is recorded, 
we deem it sufficient that we refer to a passage which we 
will not hesitate to call a parable, but which is not said 
in the scripture where it occurs, to be a parable. See 
Judges ix. 8, — 15. The passage begins thus ; The trees 
went forth on a time to anoint a king over them ; and 
they said unto the olive-tree, reign thou over us. 
The olive-tree refuses. They next apply to the 
fig-tree, and that refuses. They next apply to the 
vine, and the vine refuses. They at last all go to the 
bramble, where they succeed in obtaining a king. If 
we are told that the cases are by no means parallel, 
because every body knows that trees never talked to 
each other, and that they never wanted a king to 
reign over them, we reply; these well known facts 



ON ATONEMENT. 



175 



are no better known than it is known that the eyes 
of a dead man in the grave see nothing, and that 
his ears hear nothing, and that his tongue feels 
nothing, and that his lips say nothing. If our 
©pposer says that the rich man was not in the 
grave, but in hell, he is informed that the word which 
is here rendered hell is the same word which is ren- 
dered grave 1. Cor. xv. 55. c O death, where is thy 
sting ? O grave, where is thy victory Now if he 
contend that this hell is a place of torment in the in- 
visible world, he must grant that it will be overcome ; 
for the apostle adds, 6 The sting of death is sin ; and 
the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God 
which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus 
Christ. 5 But we would have it distinctly understood, 
that we do not believe that the parable has any refer- 
ence to the state of man in the future world. 

There is a passage in the 12th of Matthew, the 31st 
and 32d verses, which has been contended for as an 
unanswerable objection to universal salvation. The 
text reads thus, " Wherefore I say unto you, all man- 
ner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men ; 
but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be 
forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word 
against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him ; but 
whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall 
not be forgiven him, neither in this world nor in 
the world to come." The common idea of this 
tvorld and the world to come, is the present life of 
man on earth, and that state in which man exists here 
after. Could it be proved, that this was the right mean 
ing of the word, world, there would be something 
more in the text than we can now see. Some, who 
have ably defended the doctrine of universal salvation, 



176 



TREATISE 



have admitted the common idea of the passage, so far 
as it goes to prove future misery, yet, have abundant- 
ly proved, that it would come to an end : But if the 
word world, have the signification of age or dispensa- 
tion, as will not be disputed, it will be impossible to 
prove, that any thing, beyond what may be experi- 
enced by men, in this mortal state, was intended, in 
this text. We are informed, that Christ came once in 
the end of the world, to put away sin, by the sacrifice 
of himself The world, in the end of which Christ 
came, was undoubtedly the dispensation of the legal 
priesthood ; according to which idea, the ivorld, which 
was then to come, is the dispensation of gospel light 
which rose on the Gentile world, for the purpose of 
bringing them to the knowledge and worship of the 
true God ; which dispensation ends with the conver- 
sion of the fulness of the Gentiles, and will be succeed- 
ed by that in which Israel will be visited by the spirit 
of their Messiah, and shall say, Blessed is he who Com- 
eth in the name of the Lord. 

What we have written on this subject will show the 
reader the propriety of supposing, that the sin, which 
the pharisees committed, in blaspheming the Holy 
Spirit, by which Christ wrought miracles, has been 
visited upon their descendents even to this day, and 
will continue upon them, until the fulness of the Gen- 
tiles be come in. But we see no need of carrying the 
meaning of these words to an endless eternity, or 
even beyond the experience of man in this natur- 
al life. Therefore, admitting the doctrine of future 
punishment true, we cannot see it proved from these 
words. 

Could it be proved, that eternal or endless misery 
was a natural production of the divine nature, there 



ON ATONEMENT. 



177 



being an unchangeable principle to support such mis- 
ery ; the argument, on our part, must be given up. If 
sin be, in a moral sense, the cause of misery ; should 
sin ever be brought to an end, its consequences, which 
are misery, would also come to an end. If our oppo- 
nent can tell us how Jesus will finish sin , and make 
an end of transgression, and, yet sin and transgression 
continue as long as God exists, he will embarass us 
more than all his objections have been able to do. 

Having answered, as we hope, to the reader's satis- 
faction, some of the most important objections against 
God's universal goodness to his creatures, we shall 
now turn on the other hand, and give the reader some 
evidences for believing in the so much despised doc- 
trine of universal holiness and happiness. First, we 
reason from the nature of divine goodness, in which 
all pretend to believe, and none dare, in a direct sense 
to deny that God could not, consistent with himself, 
create a being that would experience more misery 
than happiness. Secondly, if God be infinitely good, 
his goodness is commensurate with his power and 
knowledge; then, all beings whom his power pro- 
duced, are the objects of his goodness ; and to prove, 
that any being was destitute of it, would prove that 
Deity's knowledge did comprehend such being. 
Thirdly, there is as much propriety, in saying, that 
God is infinite in power, but that he did not create all 
things ; as there is, in saying, though God be infinite in 
goodness, yet, part of his creatures will never be the 
partakers of it. It might as well be said, that God is 
infinite in knowledge, and yet ignorant of the most 
part of events which are daily and hourly taking place , 
as to say, that he is infinitely good, and yet only a few 
of his creatures were designed for happiness. Fourth- 



178 



TREATISE 



ly, if the Almighty, as we believe him to be, did not 
possess power sufficient to make all his creatures hap- 
py, it was not an act of goodness in him to create 
them. If he has that power, but possesses no will 
for it, it makes a bad matter as much worse as is pos- 
ble. We then reduce our opponent to the necessity 
of telling us, if those, whom he believes will be end- 
lessly lost, be those whom God could save but would 
not ! or those whom he would save but could not ! 
if it be granted, that God has both power and will to 
save all men, it is granting all we want, for a founda- 
tion of our faith. 

We would further argue, that, as man is constituted 
to enjoy happiness, on moral principles, (to the know- 
ledge of which principles we come by degrees) it is as 
reasonable to believe that all men were intended to 
obtain a competent knowledge of the moral princi- 
ples of their nature, as that any of Adam's race were. 
There is not an individual of the whole family of man, 
who is perfectly satisfied with those enjoyments which 
earth and time afford him ; he is constituted for nobler 
pleasures, which to us, is an evidence that God has 
provided, for all, some better things than can be found 
in earthly enjoyments. There is an immortal desire, 
in every soul, for future existence and happiness : For 
the truth of this assertion we appeal to the conscien- 
ces of our readers. Why should the Almighty im- 
plant this desire in us, if he never intended to satisfy 
it ? Supposing a mother has the power of modifying 
the desires and appetite of her child, would she cause 
it to want that which she could not get for it ? Would 
she take pleasure in seeing her child pine for fruits 
which did not grow in the country where she lived, 
and which she could not get ? Or, would she prefer 



ON ATONEM BNT. 



179 



the anguish of the child, to its happiness, when it was 
in her power to grant all it wanted ? If such a moth- 
er were to be found, who would call her a godly wo- 
man ? Could her child, thus tormented, rise up and 
call her blessed ? No, surely it could not. 

We further argue, that, all wise, good, and exem- 
plary men, wish for the truth of the doctrine for which 
we contend ; they earnestly pray for the salvation of 
all men, and do all in their power, by the grace of 
God, to dissuade men from sin, to the obedience of 
the gospel ; they enlist willingly into the service of vir- 
tue, to endeavor to win proselytes to holiness ; their 
object is the destruction of sin, and the advancement 
of righteousness ; and they believe, and we think just- 
ly, that God will bless their labors. 

None, but wicked men, would wish for the endless 
duration of sin ; were it left to the carnal mind, it 
would wish for nothing but the privilege of drinking 
in iniquity forever. But those, who truly love God 
and holiness, desire, night and day, to overcome the 
vile propensities, of their own deceitful hearts, and 
pray for the reconciliation of others to holiness and 
happiness. Now, why should we suppose that God 
is more of the mind of the wicked, than of the right- 
eous? If it be God's spirit in us, which causes lis to 
pray for the destruction of sin, is it reasonable, to say ? 
that this same spirit has determined that sin shall al- 
ways exist ? Are we not right, in judging of the na- 
ture and character of God, from the dictates of his 
spirit in us ? If so, does this spirit teach us the ne- 
cessity of endless transgression and misery ? We wish 
the reader to keep in mind, that we hold sin and mis- 
ery inseparably connected, and holiness and happiness 
«o likewise. 



180 



TREATISE 



We further argue, if any of the human race be end- 
lessly miserable, the whole must be, providing they all 
know it ; for, reasoning from that spirit of benevolence 
which is necessary to a conformity to the principles of 
holiness, we prove it impossible for a well disposed 
man to see another in misery, without bearing a very 
sensible proportion of such misery. If it be argueed, 
that this idea is wrong, and that the spirit which dic- 
tates it, is of the evil one ; we say, in answer, all good 
men in the world feel it to be a truth ; and no man 
ever exhibited more of it than the Saviour of the 
world. 

If any one should be so particular as to query, 
asking, if the Almighty himself be not desirous of the 
salvation of sinners ; and if so, how can this happiness 
be complete ? We answer, a being to whom events 
do not take place in succession, nor time pass away, 
with whom an eternity is a present now, whose know- 
ledge, is intuitive, and who can neither hope nor an 
ticipate, can neither increase nor decrease in happi- 
ness. But when we speak of God, abstractedly, our 
words ought to be few and chosen. 

Those, who are the most devout on earth, are the 
most desirous for the advancement of the Redeemer's 
kingdom, and the deliverance of themselves and their 
fellow men, from sin and misery. 

How the idea ever got place in the human mind, 
that, even fathers and mothers, in the world to 
come, would rejoice, to see their own offspring in 
endless flames and hopeless torments, we can hardly 
conceive ; though the probability is, it was first in- 
vented, to shun, in theory, those difficulties not oth- 
erwise to be avoided. We wish use to this error as 
prudently as possible ; but we wish to have it rightly 



ON ATONEMENT. 



181 



understood, and judged of impartially. Vv ill perfect 
reconciliation to God have this effect? We know it 
is contended, that it will; but what evidence have we 
of it ? Was not Christ reconciled, or in a state of 
conformity to God's law ? Did he manifest joy, at 
the sufferings of mankind ? When he looked on Je- 
rusalem, that abominable city, and knew that its chiefs 
would be his murderers, when he spake of the dread- 
ful calamities just ready to burst on their devoted 
heads, how did he feel? Streams of sorrow break 
from the eye of innocence ; in his grief, he spake of 
their destruction, but prophecies of their seeing him 
again, when they should welcome him, saying, 
6 Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the 
Lord ! " 

If perfect reconciliation to God will effect complete 
happiness at the sight of human misery, the more we 
are reconciled to God, the more satisfaction we should 
take in seeing our fellow creatures miserable ! Then, 
those, who can look on men in distress with the least 
sorrow, are the most reconciled to divine goodness ; 
and those who feel the most sorrow at the afflictions 
of their fellow men, are the most perverse and wicked ! 
Some may say, heaven is entirely different from this 
world, and when we get there, we shall be totally 
changed from what we now are ; therefore, it will not 
do to argue, what we shall be there, from what we 
ought to be here. Then the awful fact is, all we call 
goodness here, will be called badness there ; and that 
which we call badness here, will be goodness there ! 

If the effects of moral holiness, in the world to 
come, should be different from what they are here, 
we wish to be informed on what moral principle the 
change is made. If these things be so, the hearts of 
16 



182 



TREATISE 



the cruel need but little alteration, to prepare them 
for heaven, and that little in making them what we 
should call worse. Such a heaven as this, does not, 
we hope, exist in the universe. Our opponent will 
urge his argument still further, on this subject, and 
say, it is not the misery of the wicked that affords so 
much pleasure to those who are in heaven, but their 
joy is increased, in consequence of the execution of 
justice. This, however, is giving up what is con- 
tended for, viz. that every degree of misery will create 
thousands of degrees of happiness, because, could di- 
vine justice be as well understood, without this misery, 
as with it, the misery itself would do no good. We 
are willing to grant, that a good man will prefer the 
execution of justice, to his own private case, or the 
partial happiness of a criminal. But how would a 
judge appear who should manifest joy and gladness, 
on pronouncing the sentence of death upon one of his 
fellow men ? Who would not turn from such a court 
with disgust and deep abhorrence ? To call such a 
circumstance an instance in which men have an occa- 
sion to rejoice, is a violation of our senses. We wijl 
say, for ourselves, we neither expect nor desire per- 
fect happiness, while we see our fellow men in mise- 
ry ; we had rather be possessed of that sympathy 
which causes us to feel for another, than to enjoy an 
unsocial pleasure in a frosty heaven of misanthropy ! 
Is it possible that we should be completely happy, 
and see those in misery whom we love^ No one 
will say we can. Are we not commanded to love our 
enemies ? Can we be truly happy and not love them ? 
Surely we cannot ; then how can we be completely 
happy, and see them miserable ? A parent may be 
persuaded to attend his child, while a surgeon performs 



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183 



an amputation; but with what acute feelings his 
heart is agitated ! How eagerly would he endure the 
pain, if it were possible ! But there is something in 
all this, that is tolerable ; he is in hopes of saving the 
life of his child. Were it not for his hopes, could he 
fendure the sight ? But what is all this compared with 
a parent viewing his child in endless flames ! O, pa- 
rents, what a blessed circumstance it is, that, when we 
are called to part with our children, on earth, we can 
mingle a little joy with the sorrow, in hoping they be- 
long to the deathless family in heaven ! If the good 
desires, which are found in the christian heart, are 
ever to be satisfied, universal subjection to the gov- 
ernment of Christ will surely take place. If virtue ev- 
er gain an universal victory over sin and vice, univer- 
sal holiness and happiness will be the consequence. 
Man exists on such a principle, as renders him capable 
of improving in knowledge and happiness, which he 
obtains by experience ; and it is very evident, that, as 
the wheels of time move, man is fast advancing, which 
favors the idea, that, at some period, known to Deity, 
the desired haven will be obtained, in the acquisition 
of that wisdom which is from above. 

When we send our children to school, it is for the 
purpose of learning that of which they are ignorant ; 
and it is by degrees, that those sciences are obtained, 
which constitute them learned. — When a child first 
takes a quill in hand to write, he blunders, but does 
not blunder so as to imitate the copy, neither will two 
out of a thousand imitate each other. 

Men begin their moral existence, in their separate 
capacity, in the same way ; unacquainted with the 
skill of their divine preceptor, they err from sacred 
rules, and differ from their fellow pupils. Jars and 



184 



TREATISE 



broils ensue, and sorrow and woe are the conse- 
quences. But as fast as they become taught, they 
conform to the divine rules of their master, and learn, 
that their happiness consists in being united. Hap- 
piness is the greatest object of all rational beings, and 
no one will follow any particular object any longer 
than he thinks it subservient to his main one. The 
reason why men sin, is, they think, and think errone- 
ously, that they shall obtain more happiness in so do- 
ing, than in following the dictates of* truth. But is it 
reasonable to suppose, that the error will never be dis- 
covered ? Will the sinner never find his mistake ? O 
yes, says our opposer, to his eternal confusion and 
endless misery ! But stop a moment ; if he find his 
mistake, he will abandon the object ; and when he 
ceases to sin, he begins to reform, and approximate to- 
wards holines and happiness. We have sufficiently 
argued, that man cannot be miserable, in consequence 
of moral condemnation, any longer than he is, in a 
moral sense, a sinner. Then he must sin, endlessly, 
in order to [be miserable so long ; which if so, he 
will never find his mistake, he will never learn that 
righteousness and truth are more productive of happi- 
ness than sin. But we think it erroneous, to sup- 
pose, that a being who is capable of learning any thing 
cannot learn sometime short of eternity that it is bet- 
ter to do right, than wrong. Should we argue, how- 
ever, that that might, in some cases, be true, it would 
destroy the idea of complete and positive misery, for 
which my opponent contends. Complete misery 
would not admit of a prospect which could administer 
the smallest hope; in which case, the soul would have 
no object which could possbly induce it to action ; 
then would it become inert, and its existence would be 



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185 



destroyed, and become not a subject of happiness, or 
misery. 

We would argue again, from a reasonable idea, ad- 
mitted by all, viz. that mankind, in their moral ex- 
istence, originated in God. Why then do we deny his 
final assimilation with the fountain from whence he 
sprang? The streams and rivulets which water the 
hill-country, run in every direction, as the make of 
land occasions. They are stained with various mines 
and soils, through which they pass ; but at last they 
find their entrance into the ocean, where their differ- 
ent courses are at an end, and they are tempered like 
the fountain which receives them. Though man, at 
present, forms an aspect similar to the waters in their 
various courses, yet, in the end of his race, we hope 
he will enjoy an union with his God, and with his fel- 
lows. 

Having given a few hints, from the nature of mor- 
al beings, in favor of my general plan, we shall beg 
the attention of the readei to some evidences, from 
the scriptures of truth, in favor of universal holiness 
and happiness. 

It will not be expected that all, or more than a 
small part of the passages, which relate to this sub- 
ject, will be presented in this work ; but we will en- 
deavor to arrange those we do adduce in such order, 
and accompany them with such remarks, as we hope 
may convey conviction to the candid reader. 

It is well known that the gospel dispensation is in- 
timately connected with certain promises^ which God 
made to the ancient- fathers of the Jewish nation. 
See Gal. iii. 16 — 18. ' Now to Abraham and to his 
seed were the promises made. He saith not, and to 
seeds, as of many; but as of one, and to thy seed, 
16* 



186 



TREATISE 



which is Christ. And this I say, that the covenant 
that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, 
which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot 
disannul, that it shoud make the promise of none effect. 
For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of prom- 
! se, but God gave it to Abraham by promise.' Heb. vi. 17 
20 ' Wherein God willing more abundantly to shew unto 
the heirs of promise the immutability of his coun- 
sel, confirmed it by an oath ; that by two immutable 
things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we 
might have strong consolation, who have fled for ref- 
uge, to lay hold upon the hope set before us : which 
hope we have as an anchor of the soul both sure and 
steadfast, and which entereth into that within the vail ; 
whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus 
made an high priest forever, after the order of Mel- 
chisedec. 5 Acts xiii. 30 — 33. c But God raised him 
from the dead ; and he was seen many days of them 
which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, 
who are his witnesses unto the people. And we declare 
unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which 
was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same 
unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Je- 
sus again.' We presume it is not necessary to quote 
more passages to show that the gospel of Jesus Christ, 
with all its favors, is pursuant to certain promises which 
God made to the fathers. This fact being clearly un- 
derstood, it will appear altogether reasonable that we 
begin our examination o f scripture proof of whatever 
we believe in, as the final result of the gospel schemes, 
by a careful examination of those primitive promisees ; 
for if, as we have seen, in the passage just quoted 
from Acts, the glad tidings of the gospel, proclaimed 
by the apostle, were a declaration that the promise 



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187 



which God made to the fathers he had fulfilled the 
same by raising up Jesus again, then have we a right 
to believe in all that we find contained in the promises, 
and nothing more. 

Now as we are going to examine those ancient 
promises of our heavenly Father, and as we are about 
to inquire into their most evident import in reference 
to what we ought to believe will be the final result of 
the gospel of Jesus Christ, let us engage in this work 
with honest unprejudiced minds ; and let us lay aside 
all prepossessions which might tend to bias our judg- 
ment, and be willing to submit to whatever we find 
in this great charter of the divine will. Gen. xii. 1, 2, 3. 
c Now the Lord had said unto Abraham, get thee out 
of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy 
father's house, unto a land that I will show thee, and 
I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless 
thee, and make thy name great, and thou shalt be a 
blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee and curse 
him that curseth thee ; and in thee shall all the families of 
the earth be blessed.' Chap, xxii, 15 — 18. c And the an- 
gel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven 
the second time, and said, by myself have I sworn, 
saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, 
and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son,' that 
in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will 
multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as 
the sand which is upon the sea shore ; and thy seed 
shall possess the gate of his enemies : and in thy seed 
shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.' This 
promise which God made to Abraham, he confirmed 
to Isaac, as we read Chap. xxvi. 3, 4. Sojourn in this 
land ; and I will be with thee, and will bless thee ; 
for unto thee and to thy seed I will give all these coun- 
tries ; and I will perform the oath which I sware unto 



188 



TREATISE 



Abraham thy father ; and I will make thy seed to mul- 
ply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy 
seed all these countries ; and in thy seed shall all the 
nations of the earth be blessed. 5 See also the confir- 
mation of this promise to Jacob : Chap, xxviii. 13, 14. 
e And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am 
the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of 
Isaac : the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give 
it, and to thy seed, and thy seed shall be as the dust 
of the earth ; and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, 
and to the east, and to the north, and to the south ; 
and in thee, and in thy seed, shall all the families of 
the earth be blessed. 5 

Having these promises thus before us, it may be of 
service to notice several particulars in their character. 
1st. As to the blessing or blessings which they prom- 
ise to all the nations and to all the families of the earth, 
there appears an entire impartiality. 2d. Whatever 
blessing or blessings were intended by these promises, 
there is not the least intimation that they were prom- 
ised on any conditionality. That the fulfilment of 
them depended entirely on the will and power of God 
is seen by the passage before quoted from Acts xiii. 
32, 33. c And we declare unto you glad tidings, how 
that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God 
hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that 
he hath raised up Jesus again. 5 It seems, according 
to this very plain testimony, that the resurrection of 
Jesus was the fulfilment of the promise to bless all the 
nations and all the families of the earth in the seed of 
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, which seed is Christ. 
Now that there may be no mistake or doubt as to what 
the blessing is which was promised to all the nations 
and to all the families of the earth in Christ, we invite 
the readers attention to the following scriptures : Gal. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



189 



iii. 8. c And the scriptures, foreseeing that God would 
justify the heathen through faith, preached before the 
gospel unto Abraham, saying, in thee shall all nations 
be blest.' By this passage we learn that the blessing 
promised was justification through faith. Compare 
Rom. iv. 25. < Who was delivered for our offences, 
and was raised again for our justification.' See more 
corresponding passages : Col. i. 20. 8 And, (having made 
peace by the blood of his cross) by him to reconcile 
all things unto himself ; by him, I say, whether they 
be things in earth, or things in heaven.' That the 
things to be reconciled were man may be seen next by 
the next verse ; 6 And you, that were sometime alien- 
ated, and enemies in your minds by wicked works, 
yet now hath he reconciled.' The way in which 
Christ effected this reconciliation is expressed m the 
next verse ; 6 In the body of his flesh through death? 
to present you holy, and unblameable, and unprova- 
ble in his sight.' Eph. i. 9, 10. ' Having made known 
unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good 
pleasure, which he hath prepared in himself : that, in 
the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gath- 
er together in one all things in Christ, both which are 
in heaven, and which are on earth ; even in him.' 
What a glorious foundation for hope is here. How 
blessed was Abraham when he rejoiced in the day of 
Jesus. How blessed were the prophets of the Lord 
who saw these things, though afar off ; the sight wean- 
ed their affections from all earthly things ; they sought 
a city which hath foundation, whose builder and ma- 
ker is God. When Jacob blessed his sons, he spake of 
the coming of Shiloh, unto whom, saith he, shall the 
gathering of the people be; see Genesis xlix. 10. 
How exactlv does this testimony of the patriarch agree 



190 



TREATISE 



with that of the apostle's ; u Unto him shall the gath- 
erings of the people be." " That in the dispensation 
of the fulness of times, he might gather together in 
one all things in Christ."' We will hear what the 
prophet David, says, concerning the kingdom of Christ, 
Psalms lxxii. 11. " Yea, all kings shall fall down be- 
fore him ; all nations shall serve him." Verse 14. " He 
shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence." 
Verse 17. " And men shall be blessed in him, all na- 
tions shall call him blessed." If any wish to argue, that 
David meant no other than Solomon, by the King's 
son, let them take notice of the 7th and 8th verses. 
" In his days shall the righteous flourish ; and abun- 
dance of peace so long as the moon endureth. He 
shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the 
river unto the ends of the earth." The moon yet en- 
dures, but the reign of Solomon does not. The king- 
dom spoken of, in the text, was to be universal ; but 
Solomon's was not. Let us take particular notice of 
the 11th verse. " Yea all kings shall fall down be- 
fore him." Shall all the cruel tyrants of the earth 
bow down to him who was born in a stable ? Shall 
all the haughty kings of the proud and wealthy na- 
tions, bow down to him whose chosen companions 
when on earth were poor fishermen ? Will you, out 
opponent, say, this is a pleasing doctrine to the car 
nal mind ? Herod, who caused the massacre in 
Bethlehem, in order to murder Christ in infancy, 
could hardly be persuaded that it was agreeable to his 
carnal mind to bow before Jesus, at the head of this 
little band of martyrs. No, carnal mind must be cru- 
cified before all this can be done. 

Would it please the present kings of Europe, to tell 
them, to beat their swords into ploughshares, and their 



ON ATONEMENT. 



191 



spears into pruning nooks, ana to learn war no more i 
Would it be agreeable to their carnal, proud and 
haughty minds, to submit to the religion of the Sa- 
viour ? Which of them would, in order to gratify car- 
nal mindedness, abandon all his equipage, his hor- 
ses and chariots of state, mount a forlorn ass, ride into 
an enemy's land, preach peace and salvation to his in- 
veterate foes, die by cruel hands, and pray for his 
murderers in death ? And can you believe that all 
the kings of the earth can bow down before the Sa- 
viour, with any more gratification to carnal minded- 
ness, than they could imitate him, in his life and death ? 
" All nations shall serve him." If all nations serve 
Christ, will they not all be blessed in him, according to 
the promise ? We do not argue that any will be 
blessed in Christ, who do not serve him; but the text 
says, all nations shall serve him. Psalm xxxvii. 10, 
" For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be, 
yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it 
shall not be." Verse 36. " Yet he passed away, and 
he was not, yea I sought him, but he could not be 
found." If the wicked continue in sin as long as God 
exists, it appears to us to be improper to say, yet a 
little while, and the wicked shall not he. And if God 
have prepared a place of endless torments for the 
wicked, and that in sight of the righteous in heaven, 
it is hardly proper to say, thou shalt diligently consid- 
er his place, and it shall not he. And if the wicked 
are to be tormented forever, in sight of the righteous, 
why is it said, " I sought him but he could not be 
found?" Psalm xxii. 27. " Ml the ends of the 
world shall remember and turn unto the Lord, and all 
the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee." 
Who will doubt the salvation of those who turn unto 



TREATISE 



the Lord and worship before him ? See Psalm ii. 7, 8. 
" I will declare the decree : the Lord hath said unto 
me, thou art my Son ; this day have I begotten thee. 
Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine 
inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for 
thy possession." Compare this beautiful passage with 
one like it in Col. i. 19. " For it pleased the Father, 
that in him should all fulness dwell." In what a ca- 
pacious Saviour did David believe ! Should a preach- 
er, at the present day, recite the words which we have 
just quoted, he would immediately be accused of hold 
ing the heretical doctrine of universal salvation, as 
his hearers might be pleased to call it ; or, should he 
communicate the doctrine half as clearly as it is com- 
municated in those quotations, that part of his audi- 
ence who were warmly opposed to the doctrine would 
grow uneasy, while those who favored the doctrine, 
would be satisfied their speaker did so likewise. 
Some method must be used to explain those scriptures 
differently from what they say, or the doctrine for 
which we contend is fairly proved by them. 

Let us pass to the prophceies of Isaiah ; see Chap, 
xxv. 6, 7, 8. " And in this mountain shall the Lord 
of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a 
feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, 
of wines on the lees well refined. And he will de- 
stroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast 
over all 'people, and the vail that is spread over all na- 
tions. He will swallow up death in victory ; and the 
Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces ; and 
the rebuke of his people shall be taken away from off 
all the earth : for the Lord hath spoken it." No one 
will doubt, that the provisions here spoken of are 
those which are provided in the gospel of salvation. 



ON ATONEMENT. 



193 



In the first place, then, observe, it is made for all 
people ; this proves, that it was the intention of him 
who made the feast, that all people should share of its 
divine benefits. 

2dly. It is testified, that the vail of darkness, 
which was over all people, should finally be taken 
away. 

3dly. That death is to be swallowed up in victory 
and tears wiped from off all faces. And, 

Lastly. That the rebuke of God's people should be 
taken from off all the earth. And the evidence given 
to prove it would all be done, is, the Lord hath spo- 
ken it. 

It is of no avail, for any to pretend that though the 
provisions of the gospel were provided for all people, 
yet, all will not partake of them, let the reasons be 
what they may ; for, if God wipe tears from off all 
faces, all must receive the benefits of gospel grace and 
peace. Compare this testimony with 1 Cor. xv. 54, 
" So when this corruptible shall have put on incorrup- 
tion, and this mortal shall put on immortality, then 
shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, 
death is swallowed up in victory." Again, with Rev. 
xxi. 4. " And God shall wipe away all tears from 
their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither 
sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more 
pain: for the former things are passed away." How 
can it be justly said, that death is swallowed up in 
victory, when the fact is, death will reign as long as 
God exists ? Or, how can it be said, that God shall 
wipe all tears from the eyes of men, if millions are to 
mourn to an endless eternity ? Or, why is it said, 
there shall be no more sorrow, crying nor pain, if sor- 
row, crying and infinite pain, are never to cease ? 
17 



194 



TREATISE 



Isaiah ix. 6, 7, the Saviour is prophecied of, as possess* 
ing a kingdom, the increase of which should have no 
end. To the same purpose, see also Daniel vii. 14, 
" And there was given him dominion, and glory, and 
a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, 
should serve him ; his dominion is an everlasting do- 
minion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom 
that which shall not be destroyed." 

Observe, " All people, nations, and languages 
shall serve him" If a great part of the human race 
are to exist in endless rebellion against Christ and his 
kingdom, it seems that the prophet was not not only 
ignorant of it, but believed the reverse. Isaiah xlix. 
6. And he said, it is a light thing that thou shouldst 
be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to 
restore the preserved of Israel : I will also give thee 
for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayst be my sal- 
vation unto the ends of the earth." Verse 8. " I 
will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the 
people," &c. 

. For the strength of this covenant see Jer. xxxiii. 20. 
" Thus saith the Lord ; if ye can break my covenant 
the day and my covnant of the night, and that there 
should not be day and night heirin season ; then may al- 
so my covenant be broken with David my servant," &c. 

When men are possessed of sufficient agency to stop 
the wheels of time, to silence the motion of the solar 
system, and to disannul God's covenant with day and 
night, then day and night will depend on the will of 
man. So, likewise, when he has agency to disannul 
that covenant which is ordered, and in all things sure* 
then his eternal salvation will depend on himself, and 
not on his God. 

Attend to one similitude of the Redeemer's glory 



ON ATONEMENT. 



195 



from the prophecy of Ezekiel xvii. last paragrapn ; 
'Thus saith the Lord God, I will also take of the high- 
est branch of the high cedar, and will set it ; I will, 
crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, 
and will plant it upon a high mountain and eminent : 
in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it : 
and it shall bring forth boughs and bear fruit, and be 
a goodly cedar : and under it shall dwell all fowl of 
every wing ; in the shadow of the branches thereof 
shall they dwell. And all the trees of the field shall 
know that I the Lord have brought down the high 
tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the 
green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish : I 
the Lord have spoken, and have done it." Time 
would fail us to write one half that might be quoted 
from the prophets, on this subject. We ask for no 
explanation, on their testimony ; if what they say, does 
not prove our doctrine, we will not have recourse to 
explanations. 

We have reasoned, from the goodness of God, to 
prove, that it is his will, that all men should finally, 
be holy and happy ; we will now call proof from di- 
vine revelation, of the same idea ; see St. Paul's 1st 
Epistle to Timothy ii. 4. " Who will have all men to 
be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the 
truth." What could induce St. Paul to write this 
sentence if he did not believe it ? Our opponent will 
say, he supposes Paul did believe it, and will acknow- 
ledge he believes it himself. Then, we say, all, for 
which we argue, is granted. But our opponent has a 
method by which he can explain this passage so that 
it may be true, and yet God may will the endless 
misery of millions. It is only to say, that the passage 
is expressive of God's revealed will, but not of his 



196 



TREATISE 



secret will ; arguing, that his revealed will is in direct 
opposition to a will which he has seen fit not to re- 
veal! 

Though much use is made of this method, in order 
to shun the force of this passage and many others, if 
there be any propriety in it, it is out of our sight ; or, 
if it would not betray a want of good sense, in any 
other case, we will leave our reader to judge. 

To say, God's revealed will is contrary to his eter- 
nal and unrevealed will, would in us, be blasphemy 
of the first magnitude ; yet, we do not doubt the sin- 
cerity of those who frequently say it. But is it not in 
a direct sense charging God with hypocrisy ? How- 
ever shocking it may seem, we know of no other light 
in which to view it. 

Again, if God have a will which he has not revealed, 
and our opponent knows what it is, we would ask how 
he came by this knowledge ? God's revealed will is, 
that all men should be saved ; but his secret will is, 
that most of them should be endlessly miserable ! we 
would ask, when this will was a secret ? It has been 
openly talked of, by limit avians ever since the light 
of the gospel advanced so as to discover the apostacy 
of christians. 

St. Paul speaks of the mystery of God's will which 
he proposed in himself, which, the apostle says, God 
has made known ; see Eph, i. 9. " Having made 
known unto us the mystery of his will, according to 
his good pleasure, which he purposed in himself." 
And in verse 10, he tells what this will is ; but it is 
very different from what our opposer says the hidden 
will of God is ; " That in the dispensation of the ful- 
ness of times, he might gather together in one all 
things in Christ, both which are in Heaven and which 



ON ATONEMENT. 



197 



are on earth, even in him." St. Peter says, God is 
not willing that any should perish, but that all should 
come unto repentance. 

In short, we cannot see the propriety of saying that 
God ivill have all men to be saved, and to come unto 
the knowledge of the truth, if he predestinated, from 
all eternity, millions for endless misery ; and if he 
created any to glorify him, in endless torments, we 
cannot see why he should not be willing for them 
to perish, and answer the end for which he made 
them. 

Again, what is that truth which God wills all men 
to know ? According to the words of the text, it must 
be a truth consonant to their salvation, or they could 
not be saved, and yet believe the truth. For instance, 
suppose, out of the whole alphabet, all are to be end- 
lessly miserable except the vowel letters, and the whole 
alphabet was brought to the knowledge of the truth ; 
surely the vowels would believe they were to be saved 
but all the consonants would believe they were going 
into endless torments ; and the faith of the consonants 
would be h$ true a faith, as that of the vowels; but 
how could the consonants enjoy salvation while pos- 
sessing this faith ? 

There are some who do not admit our general sys- 
tem who will admit this part of it, viz. that it is the 
will of God, that all men should finally be holy and 
happy ; but say, at the same time, that it depends on 
the creature's accepting of offered mercy, on the ra- 
tional conditions of gospel obedience ; making gos- 
pel obedience a prerequisition to salvation : while we 
contend, that gospel obedience is, in fact, gospel sal- 
vation. 

To be saved from sin is, surely, a gospel salvation ; 
17* 



198 



TREATISE 



and to be obedient, according to the dictates of gos- 
pel grace, is salvation from sin. There is just as much 
propriety in making obedience a condition, on which 
salvation is granted, as there would be for a physician 
to propose, to a patient in a fit of the asthma, that he 
would afford relief, on condition the patient should 
first breathe easy. However, if it be granted, that it 
is God's will that all men should, finally, be holy and 
happy, we will more directly answer the supposition, 
that this will may fail, by the words of St Paul ; see 
Eph. i. 11 " In whom we also have obtained an in- 
heritance, being predestinated, according to the pur- 
pose of him, who worketh all things after the council 
of his own will" If God will have all men to be sav- 
ed, and worketh all things after the council of his own 
ivill, it proves that for which we contend, as fully as 
any thing can be proved from scripture. Our oppo- 
nent perhaps will say, (as many have said to me in 
conversation) after meeting with much difficulty in ar- 
guing, " any thing may be proved, by scripture. 5 ' To 
which, we reply, there is one thing, that the scriptures 
do not prove, neither can all the ingenuity of man 
make them substantiate it, and that is, the endless 
misery of a moral being. 

If any of our opposers can prove, by scripture, the 
endless duration of sin and misery, as plainly as the 
two passages above recited prove universal holiness and 
happiness, we will never contend any more, on the 
subject. 

We will take further notice of St. Paul's communi- 
cation to Timothy. He goes on, in the 5th and 6th 
verses, to give Timothy a reason for what he had as- 
serted ? " For there is one God, and one Mediator 
between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who 



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199 



gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due 
time.' The apostle's reasoning is evidently good and 
plain ; for God would not have given his Son a ransom 
for all, if it were not his will that all should be sav- 
ed ; and if it be God's will, it ought to be ours, there- 
fore, it is right to pray for all. If the ransom were 
paid for all, it argues, that it was the intention of the 
Ransomer that all should be benefited. 

What would have been the astonishment of the 
world, after the immortal Washington had caused to 
be paid a ransom for all the American prisoners who 
were in Algerine slavery, if he had told the Dey that 
he did not want more than one quarter of those cap- 
tives sent home to the land of liberty and to the en- 
joyment of their families, for which they had so long 
sighed in bondage ; and that he might wear out the 
rest with fatigue and whips? But the good man's 
soul was never satisfied until they all came home, and 
with songs of joyous liberty hailed the land of their 
nativity ! And blessed be the Captain of our salva- 
tion ; he, also, shall see of the travail of his soul and 
be satisfied, when all the " ransomed of the Lord shall 
return and come to Zion, with songs and everlasting 
joys upon their heads, when they shall obtain joy and 
gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." 

The reader's attention is now invited to those scrip- 
tures which, in expression, are more prticularly ap- 
plicable to the deliverance of mankind from this bon- 
dage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the chil- 
dren of God. 

The whole of the 15th chapter of the 1st Epistle to 
the Corinthians, was intended to refute those who de- 
nied the resurrection ; but as that doctrine is not de- 
nied by our opponent, we shall take notice only of 



200 



TREATISE 



those parts which affect the argument between us ; 
see verse 20. " But now is Christ risen from the dead, 
and become the first fruits of them that slept." 
Christ, as the first fruits of them who slept, is repre- 
sented by the heave-offering under the law. See 
Num. xv. 19,20. " Then it shall be that, when ye 
eat of the bread of the land, ye shall offer up an heave 
offering unto the Lord. Ye shall offer up a cake of 
the first of your dough, for an heave-offering : as ye 
do the heave-offering of the threshing floor, so shall ye 
heave it." Exodus xxii. 29. "Thou shalt not delay 
to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors ; 
the first born of thy sons shalt thou give unto me." 
See also, Numbers xviii. 15. By the offering of the 
first ripe fruits, the whole of the succeeding harvest 
was sanctified ; and in the first born which were re- 
deemed, the succeeding fruits of the womb were con- 
sidered holy ; see Acts xxvi. 23 " That Christ should 
suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise 
from the dead " Christ being the first who rose from 
the dead, and rising as the first fruits sanctifies all 
the rest, as did the first fruits under the law. St. 
Paul's comment on first fruits, is very illustrative of 
the scriptural meaning thereof; see Rom. ix. 16. 
" For if the first fruits be holy, the lump is also holy , 
and if the root be holy so are the branches. 

In the heave-offering under the law, there is a beau- 
tiful representation of our Saviour. The sheaf taken 
from the field, being separated from all the rest of the 
same growth, represents the separation of Jesus Christ 
from mankind to be holy unto the Lord ; and the 
sanctification of the whole harvest being by the first 
ripe fruits, is to show us, that our sanctification is in 
Jesus, the first fruits of them that slept. The same 



ON ATONEMENT. 



201 



may be clearly seen, in the instance of the dough ; a 
certain part of it was to be separated from the rest, 
for an offering unto the Lord, in which the remaining 
part of the lump (as the apostle calls it) was consid- 
ered holy. 

These observations are made here, in order to draw 
the reader's attention more closely to the labors of 
the apostle, which we have under consideration ; for 
he goes on immediately to show what he means, by 
the lump spoken of in Romans ; see verse 21. "For 
since by man came death, by man came also the res- 
urrection of the dead." 

Let us here observe, that death came by the earth- 
ly man, and the resurrection came by the heavenly 
man, which is in point to prove, that the plan of the 
gospel is to deliver mankind from the earthly Adam> 
to the immortality of the heavenly. 

Perhaps none would dispute what we here contend 
for, provided we did not extend the cure as extensive 
as the malady ; but we shall also contend for this, and 
will clearly prove it by the apostle's testimony ; see 
verse 22. " For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ 
shall all be made alive," It is not possible for us to 
state the doctrine more concisely and positively than 
the apostle has done, in the passage quoted. But 
we are willing to attend to our opponent's objections 
as we proceed. He will say, he does not dispute that 
the apostle here meant all mankind, but that he only 
intended they would all be raised from the dead, not 
that all would be delivered from condemnation and 
sin. But we will rest our argument on the words 
themselves ; we say, if all men are made alive in 
Christ, they cannot be said to be out of Christ dead, 
or alive, sinful, ro holy. 



TREATISE 



The present state of our being is derived from Ad- 
am, the earthly nature ; and in a natural sense, we 
are all in him. Our future state of existence, we de- 
rive entirely from the heavenly nature; and, therefore, 
it is said, all shall be made alive in Christ. The apos- 
tle goes on still further, to show the order of the before- 
mentioned work, arguing, from the first fruits the 
ivhole family of mankind. See 1 Cor. xv. 23, 24, 
25. " But every man in his own order : Christ the 
first fruits ; afterwards they that are Christ's at his 
coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have 
delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father : 
when he shall have put down all rule, and all au- 
thority, and power. For he must reign, till he hath 
put all enemies under his feet. 55 Christ is here again 
spoken of as the first fruits, in order of the resurrec- 
tion, which consists of two parts. 

First, of Christ himself, who was the first that rose 
from the dead. 

Secondly : Those who are Christ's at his coming, 
at what the apostle calls the end, which cannot be, 
until he hath put down all rule, authority and pow- 
er, and every enemy has submitted ; at which time, 
the Mediator delivers up the kingdom to God, the Fa- 
ther. 

Then shall the great work of reconciliation be fin- 
ished, and the labors of the Redeemer completed, 
with immortal honor. Then shall all the millions of 
the human race be reconciled to God, through Christ, 
and shall sing; see Rev. v. 11, 12, 13, 14. "And I 
beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels 
round about the throne, and the beasts, and the el- 
ders: and the number of them was ten thousand 
times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; 



ON ATONEMENT 



203 



singing with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that 
was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, 
and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessings. 
And every creature which is in heaven, and on the 
earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the 
sea, and all that are in them, heard I, saying, Blessing 
and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him that 
sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, forqver 
and ever. And the four beasts said, amen. And the 
four and twenty elders fell down, and worshipped him 
that liveth forever and ever." 

The reader will observe, that ten thousand times ten 
thousand, and thousands of thousands of angels, 
beasts and elders, first declare the Lamb, who had 
been slain, to be worthy to receive power, and rich- 
es, and wisdoth, and strength, and honor, and glory, 
and blessings ; then every creature which is in heav- 
en, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such 
as are in the sea, and all that are in them, say, Bless- 
ing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him 
who sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for- 
ever and ever. Then the elders and the beasts, who 
first pronounced him thus worthy, fell down and wor- 
shipped him who liveth forever and ever. 

There is nothing in all the sacred writings, more 
astonishingly beautiful, than this account, neither do 
we think it possible for the imagination to paint any 
thing half so grand and sublime. We are all astonish- 
ment ! To realize, by faith, the accomplishment of 
this glorious prediction, transcends every other thought, 
or idea, of which the mind is susceptible. 

There is no room for our opponent to argue, against 
the doctrine of universal holiness and happiness, while 
this passage of divine truth lies in sight. There are 



204 



TREATISE 



no expressions left out of this passage that would make 
it more extensive. 

May we not ask our opposer if he be not willing to 
acknowledge what mysterious powers have acknow- 
ledged, that Christ, the dear Lamb who hath been slain, 
is worthy to receive as extensive worship as is declared 
in the passage quoted ? 

When the four beasts and the elders saw universal 
nature bending before the object of their worship, 
they immediately fell down, anxious to excel, and 
worshipped him who liveth forever and ever. If our 
opponent think Christ is not worthy of so much wor- 
ship, he thinks less of him than we do, and less than 
we wish he did. 

There are yet remaining many passages in the 15th 
of Corinthians, which are in point, to prove what we 
are contending for, even more than is, at this time, 
necessary to introduce. A few more, however may 
be proper, with some few remarks. See verse 28. 
"And when all things shall be subdued unto him, 
then shall the Son also himself be subject to him that 
did put all things under him, that God may be all in 
all 55 

What must we understand by all things being sub- 
dued unto him ? Will any one say, all that is meant 
by it, is, Christ will then have power over all men, 
whereby he can reward the righteous, and torment 
the wicked ? When did he not possess this power ? 
When were not all things in subjection to Christ, 
enough for those purposes ? The subjection of all things 
to Christ must mean something, and it is reasonable 
to believe, that it means the reconciliation of the 
heart to holiness. Can a soul in sin, employed in 
blaspheming the Incommunicable Name, be said to be 



ON ATONEMENT. 



205 



in subjection to Christ, in any way ttiat answers to 
the text ? We do not think any will contend for it. 

The only subjection which is acceptable to Christ, is 
a broken and contrite heart, which he will not despise. 
The plan then of the gospel, is universal submission to 
Christ, in holiness and happiness. 

The delivery of the kingdom of Christ to the Fa- 
ther is declared, in the last clause of the passage quot- 
ed, of which we have before taken notice, in this 
work, in order to show the dependence of Christ on 
the Eternal and Self-existent. Then, it is said, " God 
shall be all in all." In what sense will God be all 
in all } at the close of the Redeemer's process that he 
is not now, or always was ? Answer, he that dwell- 
eth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him. When 
all men are brought to love God supremely, and their 
fellow creatuies as themselves, it will then be manifest, 
that we are liotAmg only as we exist in God ; there- 
fore, God will be all. And as the eternal spirit of 
love, which is the governing principle of the heavenly 
man, will be the governing principle of each soul thus 
reconciled to the law of love, it may justly be said that 
God is in all. See verses 47, 48, 49. " The first man 
is of the earth, earthy ; the second man is the Lord 
from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also 
that are earthy ; and as is the heavenly, such are they 
also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the 
image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of 
the heavenly. 5 ' As we have all been partakers tif the 
earthy Adam, so the apostle argues, we shall be par- 
takers in the resurrection, of the Second Adam, whom 
he calls the Lord from heaven. See verses 51,52, 53, 
54. " Behold, I will show you a mystery ; we shall 
not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a mo- 
18 



206 



TREATISE 



ment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump ? 
for the the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall 
be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For 
this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this 
mortal must put on immortality. So when this cor- 
ruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mor- 
tal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought 
to pass the saying that is written death is swallowed up 
in victory." 

If death, sin and sorrow, are to remain, as long as 
God exists, how can it be said, death is swallowed up 
in victory ? If the apostle believed any part of the 
family of man would finally be excluded from the 
blessings of the gospel, why did he not just hint some- 
thing of it, in this account of the close of the Media- 
torial kingdom ? Did he consider it a matter of too 
small moment to mention ? If he did, he is inexcu- 
sable for precluding the idea, by plain and positive 
testimony. See his conclusion, " O death ! where is 
thy sting? O grave? where is thy victory? The 
sting of death is sin ; and the strength of sin is the law. 
But thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory 
through our Lord Jesus Christ." If sin remain with- 
out end, it being the sting of death, when the question, 
is asked, O death, where is thy sting ? Sin may an- 
swer, here I am and here I will be, in spite of him who 
undertook to destroy the works of the devil, and here 
I will boast of my power as long as he does of his, 
whom angels adore, and I hate ! Phil. iii. 21. " Who 
shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned 
like unto his glorious body, according to the working 
whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto him- 
self.' 3 Observe, who shall change our vile body. In 
a former quotation, it is said, " we shall all be chang- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



207 



ed ; " and in the present passage, it is said, " whereby 
he is able even to subdue all things unto himself." 
In a former quotation, it is said, " And when all things 
shall be subdued unto him." 

Let us hear what our blessed Lord himself says, 
in respect to his mission. St. John v. 22,23. "For 
the Father judgeth no man ; but hath committed all 
judgment unto the Son ; that all men should honor 
the 5*071, even as they honor the Father. He that 
honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father, which 
hath sent him." In the sense in which this passage 
was spoken, it is evident, that the sinner does neith- 
er honor the Father, nor the Son and the plain testi- 
mony of the text is, that all men should honor both. 
Compare this with Phil. ii. 9, 10 11. "Wherefore 
God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a 
name which is above every name ; that at the name of 
Jesus, every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and 
things in earth, and things under the earth ; and that 
every tongue should confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord, 
to the glory of God the Father." As, in the other 
passage, the exaltation of the Saviour, is first spoken 
of, and then the grand intention, in his exaltation, 
shown ; so in this ; there, it is for the purpose that all 
men should honor him ; and here, it is, that unto him, 
every knee should bow 7 , of things in heaven, and things 
in earth, and things under the earth; and that every 
tongue should confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to 
the glory of God the Father. 

Of this glorious and soul-reviving truth, the proph 
et Isaiah was not ignorant, but speaks of it most clear- 
ly ; see. Chap. xlv. 22, 23, 24, 25. "Look unto me, 
and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth ; for I am 
God ? and there is rjone else. I have sworn by myself, 



208 



TREATISE 



he word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness 
and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall 
bow, every tongue shall swear. Surely, shall say, 
in the Lord have I righteousness and strength : 
even to him shall come ; and all that are incensed 
against him shall be ashamed. In the Lord shall 
all the seed of ilsrael be justified, and shall glory/ 
The reader will observe, we have left out some sup- 
plied words, in the above quotation, by which, the pas- 
sage reads without ambiguity. 

Had the inspired prophet been possessed of an 
accurate knowledge of the dispute in which we are 
engaged, we do not see how he could have written a 
sentence more pertinently to our argument; and 
we have not a doubt but the Spirit intended the pas- 
sage for the same purpose for which we have used 
it. 

St. Paul, in the viiith of Romans, shows the extent 
of redemption in so strong terms as to admit of no 
possible evasion ; see verses 22, 23. " For we know 
that the whole creation groaneth, and travaileth in 
pain together until now. And not only they, but our- 
selves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even 
we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the 
adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body." 

If the reader will be at the trouble of examining this 
passage, with its connexion, that, for which we con- 
tend, will appear plainly proved by it. 

There is no end to proofs of universal reconciliation 
to God ; for every thing of a moral nature testifies it, 
and all material nature is a figure of it. The ministry 
of reconciliation, which, St. Paul says, was committed 
to himself and others, is, that God was in Christ re- 
conciling the world unto himself, not imputing unto 



ON ATONEMENT. 



'209 



them their trespasses. The truth of Christ's dy- 
ing for all is the foundation of the apostle's argument 
on this subject ; which truth the apostle says, he was 
constrained to believe, by the love of Christ; for thus 
saith he, " The love of Christ constraineth us ; be- 
cause we thus judge, that if one died for all, then 
were all dead : and that he died for all, that they 
which live, should not henceforth live unto themselves 
but unto him which died for them, and rose again," 
2 Cor. v. 14. &c. 

We may as well stop here as any where, for as we 
just said, there is no end; and if those scriptures, 
w 7 hich we have quoted, be true, that, which we have 
endeavored to prove, is proved; but if, they be not, 
more of the same testimony would prove nothing. 

There is but one method left for our opponent, by 
which he can further oppose us ; and that is by deny- 
ing the whole system of divine revelation, and man's 
susceptibility of rational ideas : But as that would 
equally destroy all for which he would contend, he will 
undoubtedly be cautious. 

We now see clearly, that it is God's will, according 
to his eternal purpose, purposed in himself, that all 
men should finally be holy and happy ; that it was the 
intention of the Saviour's mission ; that the spirit o* 
prophecy, long foresaw this universal and godlike glo 
rious plan of grace"; that every good principle in man 
stands up in testimony of so divine a system, - that [the 
happiness of all moral beings is wrapped up in the 
glorious issue of the ministration of reconciliation, and 
that it is, in reality, opposed by none, but by unrecon- 
ciled beings, unholy principles, and unlawful desires. 
And shall we say, the eternal good will of him who 
dwelt in the bush, must fail at last ? Must the testimony 
18* 



210 



TREATISE 



of the prophets fall to the ground ? Must the captain of 
our salvation, who warred in righteousness, who red- 
dened his garments in his own blood, who bore the 
sins of the world, and suffered death in agony, to ob- 
tain his lawful inheritance, be robbed of them at last ? 
Were this believed in heaven, the royal diadem would 
fall from the head of him whom all heaven adores ! 
But blessed be the Lord, and blessed be his truth, its 
divine power shall cause the Leviathan of infidelity to 
bite the ground, shall rend the vail which is cast over 
all nations, and shall more and more manifest divine 
righteousness and the name in which it is found, in 
which name alone is salvation. In the days of the 
apostles, the greatest object in preaching the gospel of 
Christ, was to prove him to be the Saviour of the 
world, the true Messiah of the law, urging, that he 
died for all, that he made no distinction between [Jew 
and Gentile, but had broken down the partition-wall 
between them, for the glorious purpose of making, of 
the twain, one new man in everlasting fellowship and 
eternal peace. But how hath the gold changed, how 
hath the most fine gold become dim ! The main ap- 
parent object, at the present day, is to prove the ob- 
ject of the Saviour's mission, as it respects the salva- 
tion of sinners, extremely limited, and that but few of 
the human race will finally be the redeemed of the 
Lord to the praise of his glory ; that the great adversa- 
ry of righteousness will obtain a much larger conquest 
of souls than Christ himself; and, O, shocking to 
name, eternal justice is profaned, by being called to 
assist the serpents designs, in the endless duration of 
sin and rebellion against God ! Those, whom the 
Lord hath blessed with a belief of universal holiness 
and happiness, are proscribed as heretics, infidels ? 



ON ATONEMENT. 



offscourings of the earth, friends to nothing but sin, 
and enemies to nothing but God and holiness ; open- 
ing a door to licentiousness of every abominable spe- 
cies, destroyers of the pure religion of Christ, and nui- 
sances to society. But is it, in reality, manifesting 
a love to sin, to argue its total destruction, by the 
power of divine righteousness ? Is it manifesting en- 
mity against God and the religion of Jesus, to con- 
tend for the propriety of all men's serving him in ho- 
liness and happiness ? And are we nuisances to so- 
ciety, because we endeavor to pursuade all men to 
love God and one another ? Can these things be dis- 
pleasing to him who was born in Bethlehem ? Will 
he not rather greatly bless such labors, though per- 
formed by those as little esteemed in the world as 
were the poor fishermen who left their nets, and fol- 
lowed the despised Nazarene ? 

Let us ask a few questions. Which reflects the 
most honor on the Divine character, to contend, it 
was necessary for him to create millions of rational 
creatures to hate him, and every divine communica- 
tion he makes to them, to all eternity, to live in end- 
less rebellion against him, and endure inconceivable 
torments, as long as God exists ; or to suppose him 
able and willing to make all his rational creatures love 
and adore him yield obedience to his divine law, and 
exist in union and happiness with himself? 

Which reflects most honor on the Saviour, to say, 
that but few will obtain salvation by him ; and though 
he died for all men, yet, his death will benefit but few ; 
or, to say, with the prophet, " He shall see of the tra- 
vail of his soul, and be satisfied, having reconciled all 
things to God, through the peace made by the blood 
of the cross ? 



212 



THE ATI SE 



If there be joy in heaven over one sinner that re- 
pented^ more than over ninety and nine just persons 
who need no repentance, which would yield the most 
joy to the heavenly hosts, the repentance of one fourth 
of mankind, or the whole ? If the servants of Christ 
here on earth desire the increase of holiness and the 
decrease of sin, which would be most agreeable to 
such a desire, the belief, that the greatest part of man- 
kind will grow more and more sinful to all eternity 
or to believe, that sin will continually decrease, and 
righteousness increase, until the former is wholly de- 
stroyed, and the latter becomes universal ? 

To answer the above questions, so as to favor my 
opponent's argument, is more than any one would be 
willing to do ; and which, if done, would involve an 
endless train of ideas too glaringly absurd to be sup- 
ported. But to answer them, agreeably to the nature 
of divine truth, opens to infinite beauties, more serene 
than the morning, and more glorious than the noon 
day. God the fountain of living waters, and the es- 
sence of eternal life, is seen, by faith in Jesus, the 
same to all rational beings, the author, supporter and 
blesser of them. Christ Jesus, the head of every 
man, is beheld as the brightness of the Father's glo- 
ry, and express image of his person, through whom 
the Eternal hath manifested the riches of his grace, 
the eternal councils of his love to the world, brought 
life and immortality to light, and manifested our eter- 
nal sonship in the Second Adam. Each holy desire, 
as the fruit of the Spirit, in the souls of those who be- 
lieve, feasts on the rich promises of Abraham's God, 
believing him faithful who hath promised. Heaven 
hath already received the heave offering of the first 
ripe fruits, and the fields are white, ready to harvest 



ON ATONEMENT. 



213 



O, ye laborers in the vineyard of the Lord, be ye not 
idle. What an extensive field is here in which for the 
nind to expand and send its desires abroad ! The 
.ranscendant beauties of salvation have visited the dark 
regions of mortality, as light and heat from the vernal 
sun visit the cold and dark north, turning frozen lands 
into fruitful fields, taking the icy fetters from limpid 
streams which bend their course to the fountain, bring- 
ing the time of the singing of birds, and causing the 
voice of the turtle to be heard. 

" I am come," says Jesus, " to send a fire on the 
earth ; and what will I, if it be already kindled ?" All 
the passages, which allude to a dispensation of fire, 
which we have observed, in this work, are direct evi- 
dences, to prove the destruction of sin and all sinful 
works, the purification of sinners, and their eternal re- 
conciliation to holiness and happiness. This fire will 
either overcome sin, or be overcome by it : But who 
will argue the latter ? If none, then let the former be 
acknowledged. 

If you say, these things appear differently from 
what you expected they Jwould, before your inquiry, 
and you find something more interesting than tradition 
has taught you ; if you feel soft, in your mind, towards 
the so much despised doctrine of universal holiness 
and happiness ; if you can believe heaven large enough 
to contain mankind, and begin to breathe in the air of 
unbounded benevolence, and feel faith mingled with 
your desires for the destruction of sin, and the in- 
crease of holiness, then come still further. The know- 
ledge of these things is progressive, and obtained on- 
ly by degrees. Let us still go on and view the hea- 
venly beauties yet to be unfolded, in the plan of the 
gospel We well know there are many difficulties to 



214 



TREATISE 



be surmounted; to profess universal salvation, will 
subject some to excommunication from regular church- 
es; others to the pain of being neglected by their 
neighbors ; others to be violently opposed by their 
companions ; and, in many instances, undoubtedly, 
the father will be against the son, and the son against 
the father ; the mother against the daughter, and the 
daughter against the mother ; and a man's enemies may 
be those of his own house : But can such difficulties 
excuse us for not owning him, who, for us, bore the 
cross and despised the shame ? All denominations, 
since the world began, have experienced some difficul- 
ties in their first establishment. Christ and his apos- 
tles wrestled hard, and encountered great opposition, 
even to the loss of all earthly things, with life itself. 
Since the apostacy, the denominations which arose 
out of Popery, have, in thousands of instances, suffer- 
ed more than duty calls us to suffer, in a land of lib- 
erty and toleration. But some will say, there are none 
who profess the doctrine in my vicinity, except some 
of the lower class of people ; and if I rank myself with 
them, my titles of honor will do me no good, and my 
road to the temple of fame will be forever intercepted. 
One will say I must believe the doctrine, I cannot 
argue against it, but I will say nothing about it, lest I 
should be mistrusted ; I would gladly embrace the 
opportunity which Nicodemus did, who went to Je- 
sus by night; but to come out boldly, to the know- 
ledge of the world, is too great a sacrifice. Says 
another I am convinced "of the truth of the doctrine, 
but I have preached so much against it, have warned 
my hearers so much to shun that heresy, I am now 
ashamed to tell them I believe it. Another feels so 
dependent on his neighbors, he wishes to have them 



ON ATONEMENT 



215 



go forward first. All these circumstances, and many 
more, bear great weight with various persons, in vari- 
ous circumstances, causing great labor of mind ; and 
those who are under such influences may be said to 
be heavy ladened. We know of no better remedy 
for those cases, than an attention to the exhortation of 
Christ, who said, " Come unto me all ye that labor 
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest ; take 
my yoke upon you and learn of me ; for I am meek 
and lowly in heart ; and you shall find rest unto your 
souls ; for my yoke is easy and my burden is light." 

The reader may judge, from those circumstances, 
whether this doctrine be pleasing to the carnal mind, 
as its enemies say. Was it pleasing to the pharisees 
of old to be taught, by Christ and his disciples, that 
publicans and harlots should enter the kingdom of 
heaven before them ? Yes, just as pleasing to their 
carnal minds, as it is to a professed preacher of Christ, 
who can thank God that he is better than other men, 
to tell him that those, upon whom he looks as much 
viler than himself, stand in no more need of pardon 
than he does. St. Paul, before his conversion to 
Christianity, undoubtedly looked on the doctrine of 
Christ to be exactly calculated to please wicked men, 
as the most part of those who were discipled by it, 
were publicans and sinners ; and he well knew, that 
the foundation of their hope was the forgiveness of 
sin. This he despised, as did many of his equals in 
the Jewish religion; feeling themselves whole, they 
felt no need of a physician. They supposed the gos- 
pel to be a doctrine every way 'calculated to vitiate 
and immoralize mankind. Undoubtedly the pharisees 
often said, of the disciples of Christ, their religion is 
perfectly suited to their characters ; they are sinners, 



916 



TREATISE 



and know not the law ; and they have contrived a 
very easy way to get to heaven. But if we ask St. 
Paul, after his conversion, what he thought of these 
things, he would undoubtedly give a very different ac- 
count. For when the Lord met him in the way, and 
gave him to understand his real character, and what 
he was doing; he was astonished, and fell to the 
earth ; his sins were set in order before him, and his 
soul was greatly troubled. In this situation, he learn- 
ed the necessity of the doctrine which he had despised ; 
experienced the necessity of its pardoning mercy ; and 
became as willing to endure persecution, for its sake, 
as he had been to persecute it before. 

When it is understood, that gospel salvation is sal- 
vation from carnal Handedness and all its relative ills, 
to a reconciliation to the law of the spirit of life in 
Christ Jesus; if all men were thus saved, it would not 
be argued, that it is pleasing to the carnal mind. As 
the doctrine for which we contend, is entirely the re- 
verse of carnal mindedness, so it is equally opposed to 
licentiousness ; for what can be a stronger restraint on 
the passions than a belief in God's universal goodness, 
and that all men are the objects of his mercy ? Such 
a belief, when it has its proper effects in the mind, 
raises a supreme affection for God, and kindles the sa- 
cred fire of love and unbounded benevolence to man- 
kind. If any would dispute us, on our statement of 
the consequences of this faith, we have greatly the ad- 
vantage ; as our opponent does not possess this faith, 
he cannot tell the effects of it so well as one can who 
does. However, we will not make use of that advan- 
tage, having argument in our power that is more than 
sufficient. Let our adversary state Hs argument, that 
we may see the strength of it The fact is, he has 



ON ATONEMENT. 



217 



no argument; he can only assert, "the doctrine is 
not productive of* love to God or man, but the reverse ; 
and if he believed it, he would commit every sin that 
was in his power." Is it hard to see, that my oppo- 
nent has made a very fair and full profession of his love 
to sin, in room of his love to God ; and a strong desire to 
injure his fellow men, in room of serving them in love? 
What was the elder brother angry for ? At what did 
he grumble ? And why did he refuse to go into his 
father's house ? Because the father had received the 
prodigal, and treated him kindly. At what did the 
laborers grumble who bore the burden and heat of the 
day ? Because those, who had wrought but one hour, 
received as much as they, and received their money 
first. At what did the pharisees and scribes murmur, 
when they saw all the publicans and sinners come to 
Jesus to hear him ? Because he did not condemn them 
to hopeless despair, but kindly received them. At 
what do our opposers rage ? At what are they dis- 
satisfied? Not because we exclude them from any 
privilege, or blessing of the gospel. What then ? We 
are sorry to name it. It is because we extend those 
blessings further, and hope they will do more good than 
what suits them ! 

As the doctrine of universal holiness and happiness 
opens an infinite field in which for the mind to expa- 
tiate, and learn the goodness of God in all his works 
and providence, it is the most animating to a benevo- 
lent soul of any that was ever believed, in our world, 
and lays the broadest foundation for exhortation to 
deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, to live sober, 
righteous and godly lives. How strong are the in- 
ducements, from such glorious views of God and his 
raercy, to lead us to imitate such unbounded goodness, 
19 



218 



THE ATI SIS 



in all our intentions and actions. And being fully 
convinced, that our happiness is in union with our du- 
ty, those who fully believe in the consequences of 
atonement, as we have argued them, will see the pro- 
priety of our endeavoring to stir up their pure minds, 
by way of remembrance, exhorting them to good works 
in all faithfulness in whatever situation duty may call 
them, or whatever the part may be which our heavenly 
Father hath called them to act, in his divine and de- 
lightsome service. The duty enjoined on the believer of 
this doctrine, is as much more extensive than the duty 
enjoined by any other faith, as the faith itself is more 
extensive ; and its delights are so, likewise. If a poor 
man was offered a thousand pounds for a day's labor,, 
it would undoubtedly be a very strong inducement to 
him to labor. But it is to be observed, in this case^ 
that it is not the labor itself which is the object, but 
the larger sum of money with which the laborer ex- 
pects to be rewarded. It is not the labor in which the 
man delights; could he obtain his money, without 
the work, it would be his choice. But when the labor 
itself is all the enjoyment, and the whole object is obe- 
dience, the laborer will not wish the time short, or the 
duty small; no, eternity is none too long for the soul 
to contemplate laboring in the endless delights of obe- 
dience to his God. 

Those, who believe a future state of happiness de- 
pends on certain duties performed by them, undoubt- 
edly intend to do those duties sometime before they 
die ; and it is often said, that a procrastination of those 
duties, on which so much depends, is dangerous, as 
life is uncertain ; yet, they had rather let it alone, un- 
til old age deprives them of the common comforts of 
life ; at which time, they may about as well be employ- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



219 



ed in the dull and disagreeable task of being good as 
any thing else. But those, who consider their duty as 
their meat and drink, ought not to need much invit- 
ing, to feed on dainties so rich. We should hardly be- 
lieve a man to be in his right mind, who, for eating a 
good meal of victuals, should charge the price of it. 
" In keeping thy commandments, there is great re- 
ward" By these observations, the reader will see how 
needful it is for us, at all times, to attend to our duty, 
because " now is the accepted time, and now is the 
day of salvation ; " to every willing and obedient soul 
who feels the power of atoning grace, salvation is pres- 
ent: Truly it is said of wisdom, " She hath builded her 
house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars : she hath 
killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she 
hath also furnished her table." God, in infinite wis- 
dom, has constituted all moral beings so that their du- 
ty is their happiness, and strict obedience fulness of 
joy. Why, then, my brethren, shall we starve ? Why 
live poor ? Why should we be so parsimonious of 
those heavenly stores that can never be exhausted ? 
" Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after right- 
eousness for they shall be filled." " Ask, and ye shall 
receive ; seek and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall 
be opened unto you." God forbids none ; "the Spi- 
rit and the bride say, come ; and let him that heareth, 
say, come ; and whoever will, let him take of the foun- 
tain of the water of life freely." Remember the salva- 
tion which God wills is a salvation from sin. Then, 
as much as you desire salvation, you will wish to avoid 
sin and wickedness. There are none who would say, 
they did not want salvation ; but how many are there 
who say, they want it by their own conduct ! No 
man, understanding^, wants salvation, any further than 



220 



TREATISE 



he wants more holiness. The universalis!;, who is real- 
ly so, prizes his duty as his heaven, as his peace, and 
his most sublime enjoyment. How then shall w 7 e be 
so lost, so blind, and so deceived, as to wish to shun 
our duty and our happiness ? If we really believe those 
things, and desire that others may be brought to see 
and believe the same, let us endeavor, in the first 
place, to prove to all men, that such a belief is of real 
service in cultivating our morals, and in regulating 
our behaviour. And, secondly, by using our abilities 
as God hath given, in cool dispassionate reasoning, 
with those who do not believe ; contending for no- 
thing but the pure principles of love, in meekness and 
all gentleness. Never argue for will sake nor for mas- 
tery : and, shunning every appearance of sophistry, 
never suffer yourselves to be anxious about the issue 
of conversation ; but speak the words of truth and so- 
berness, and leave the event to be directed by the 
spirit of God. Falsehood is so apt to detect itself, 
that an argument is generally best conducted, when 
the disputant is refuted by consequences arising from 
his own statements : and if he cannot see and under- 
stand them for himself, it will do no good to see 
them for him. If we can see for ourselves, we do 
well. 

If the Lord of the harvest hath graciously been 
pleased to call you by his grace, to preach the word 
of his gospel to his purchased possession ; to] sound 
abroad the trumpet of salvation, and to feed the sheep 
and lambs of the one true shepherd, then remember, 
that it is required of stewards that they are found faith- 
ful. St. Paul declared himself a debtor both to the 
Greeks and Barbarians, to the wise and the unwise 
He having received a dispensation of the gospel, the 



ON ATONEMENT. 221 

grace of which belonged to all men, he thereby be- 
came a debtor to all. And if we have received a dis- 
pensation of the same gospel, we are debtors to all 
whom this gospel concerns. How happy is a friend, 
who has good news to communicate to his compan- 
ions : and surely it is an office much to be desired to 
carry good news to the distressed. See the officer 
when he reads a pardon to one who expects immedi- 
ate death : his soul bursts through his eyes in streams 
of joy, while he pronounces the words which give life 
to the dead. But how much more excellent are 
the labors of those whose feet are beautiful on the 
mountains, who publish peace in the Redeemer's 
name, even glad tidings unto all people. Much 
watchfulness is necessary, lest the law of the carnal 
or old man gets the government of the mind. We 
will venture to say, there never was a preacher more 
ready, on all occasions, than the old man which we 
are exhorted to put off ; he is willing, at all times, to 

assist, never waiting to be called. He has no objec- 
tions to preaching about Christ, if Christ be not 
preached. He is perfectly willing to say, that salva- 
tion is all of God, and that Christ is a whole Saviour; 
but then it is indispensably necessary that he should 
do something ; such as asking, seeking, knocking ; or, 
if it be only accepting of offered mercy, is all he wants. 
It may be, the reader will wonder a little at what we 
here say, as we have just quoted the exhortation, to 
ask, to seek, to knock, &c. ; but we wish to be under- 
stood, that we must ask, seek and knock, not in the 
name or nature of the earthly Adam, but in the name 
and nature of the heavenly man. The old serpent, 
the devil, is never better pleased, than when he can do 

something which he thinks lays God under some obli- 
19* 



222 



TREATISE 



gation to him. If the carnal or old man get so baffled 
as to be reduced to give up his influence respecting 
our eternal life in Jesus, he will immediately propose, 
in his struggles, that all he can do, is to ensure a bless- 
ed state, for some considerable time after we die, say 
for a thousand years, or any given time ; then all must 
depend on the Saviour. If the earthly Adam can get 
us up Jacob's ladder a few steps, he is willing that 
Christ should do something by and by. Now the 
object of all those devices, of which we are not igno- 
rant, (as St. Paul says) is to keep us in the service of 
the flesh ; but remember, he that soweth to the flesh, 
shall of the fles h reap corrupt ion. A pharisee, who 
feels as if something was coming to him more than 
others receive, perhaps will not be scrupulous about 
the exact quantity. He only wishes to have proper 
attention paid him; if he can flatter himself with a 
higher seat in heaven than those are to have, on whom 
he looks as worse than himself, it satisfies his carnal 
pride: Perhaps a period of punishment for sinners, 
after death, in which they may be justly corrected, 
for not being so good and holy as this pharisee, would 
give him much satisfaction, He would then be wil- 
ling to have the poor wretches delivered from absolute 
misery, and enjoy some small conveniences. O, how 
hard it is, to be a humble disciple of the meek and 
lowly Jesus. It is death to carnal mind. If I preach 
the gospel all my life long, spend all my time and 
strength for the good of mankind, and the honor of my 
Saviour, shall I not have something more hereafter, 
than one who has mocked and derided me ? Answer, 
if I have, in truth and meekness, preached Christ, and 
have been faithful in his cause, ought I not to be thank- 
ful, that he has enabled me so to do ? Have I been 



ON ATONEMENT. 



223 



the loser, unless we are paid, in the world to come, by 
having some privilege granted us which another may not 
enjoy? O, blush, my soul, if thy follies rise so high. No, 
every moment's faithfulness has been supplied with 
streams of divine consolation; and it ought to be remem- 
bered, that the preacher never refreshes others, unless 
he himself is refreshed. If we have professed to preach 
Christ, but have preached ourselves, in room of him, un- 
doubtedly we may think there is something coming, as 
our living has been very poor, while we have thus labor- 
ed ; but the truth is, our reward has been equal to our 
service. We are willing to acknowledge, that carnal 
mind often contends, that we have done so well, we 
ought, in consequence, to expect high approbations; and 
we begin to look down on those whom we fancy of less 
magnitude. But, O, the viperous sting ! Well might an 
apostle say, "I find a law in my members warring 
against the law of my mind, bringing me into captivity 
to the law of sin which is in my members. " Says the 
same apostle, " Unto me, who am less than the least of 
all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach 
among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.' 5 
Upon what, high advantages did he calculate, above 
those who were much less in labor than himself? 
But, says the reader, will not St. Paul fare better than 
the worst of sinners, in eternity ? Judge from what 
he says, " This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all 
acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to 
save sinners, of whom I am chief" The more hum- 
ble we are, the greater our enjoyments. But when 
all are completely humbled, and perfectly reconciled ; 
when all old things are done away, and all things be- 
come new ; when he, who sitteth upon the throne^ 
maketh all things new in deed and in truth, we believe 



224 



TREATISE 



all strife, concerning who shall be great in the king- 
dom of heaven, will be at an end* Ye, who preach 
righteousness in the great congregations of the people, 
forget not the exhortation of the Captain of our salva- 
tion, ci Learn of me ." What good will all our labors 
do unless we learn of Christ ? If we learn of him, he 
will be unto us, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification 
and redemption ; and we shall preach, not ourselves, 
but Christ Jesus our Lord, and ourselves the servants 
of the people, for Jesus' sake. Remember, again, the 
exhortation of him who is the leader and commander 
of the people, " Search the scriptures." Make your- 
selves acquainted with, and have free recourse to, this 
great store-house of divine riches, that you may be 
ready to " deal a portion to seven and also to eight.' 5 
Ye are the salt of the earth." As salt preserves and 
seasons meats, so that they are acceptable, so ought 
the ministers of righteousness to endeavor, as far as pos- 
sible, to preserve mankind from sin, that they may be 
acceptable members of the church of Christ. " But if 
the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salt- 
ed ? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast 
out and trodden under foot of men." We cannot be 
profitable to others, unless we have the savor of the 
Spirit within us ; this lost, and we are good for noth- 
ing ; and in room of having a mouth, and wisdom, to 
put gainsayers to silence, we shall be overcome by 
them, and they will tread us under their feet. " Con- 
tend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the 
saints." But be sure to remember, that, " The weap- 
ons of our warfare are not carnal, but spiritual, and 
mighty through God." Carnal mind frequently urges 
the necessity of contending earnestly for the faith 
once delivered to the saints ; but then we must con- 



ON ATONEMENT. 



225 



tend in a coat of mail, and with the weapons of him 
who sought the life of the Son of Jesse. Be prepar- 
ed to meet every kind of opposition ; we must be at- 
tacked on every side, the adversary will not leave one 
stone unturned, nor a weapon in his armor, untried. 
Be cautious of any system of divinity ; remember " the 
path of the just is a shining light, which shineth more 
and more unto the perfect day." The moment we 
fancy ourselves infallible, every one must come to 
our peculiarities, or we cast them away. Even the 
truth may be held in unrighteousness. DanieVs God 
was undoubtedly the true God; but we do not con- 
ceive Darius any more the real friend of that God, 
when he made a decree that all people should wor- 
ship him, than he was when he made the decree, that 
no petition should be asked of any God or man, for 
thirty days save of himself. The cause of truth wants 
nothing in its service but the fruits of the Spirit, 
which are love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
meekness and temperance. All the divisions and sub- 
divisions which now exist among christians, or ever 
have existed, were caused wholly by the want of those 
graces. Should we be tenacious about certain senti- 
ments, and peculiarities of faith, the time is not far 
distant, when universalists, who have suffered every 
kind of contemptuous treatment, from the enemies of 
the doctrine, will be at war among themselves, and be 
trodden under foot of the gentiles. Having begun in 
the Spirit do not think to be made perfect by the flesh. 
In order to imitate our ISaviour, let us, like him, have 
compassion on the ignorant and those whom we view 
to be out of the way. Attend to the exhortation, 
" Let brotherly love continue." If we agree in bro- 
therly love, there is no disagreement that can do us 



226 



TREATISE 



any injury ; but if we do not no other agreement tan 
do us any good. Let us keep a strict guard against 
the enemy " that sows discord among brethren." Let 
us endeavor to " keep the unity of the Spirit in the 
bonds of peace." May charity, that heaven born 
companion of the human heart, never forsake us ; and 
may the promise of the Saviour be fulfilled concerning 
us, " Lo I am with you even unto the [end of the 
world." 

You have now kind reader, cast your eye over these 
pages ; perhaps you feel to say, " the doctrine of uni- 
versal holiness and happiness cannot be true, not- 
withstanding all the author has said in favor of it ; " 
and if so, we condemn you not. The time has been, 
when we believed as little of the doctrine as you now 
do ; we never adopted the belief of universal holiness 
and happiness out of choice, but from the force of real 
or suppoesd evidence. And we know you cannot be- 
lieve it, on any other ground. We hope, however, you 
feel no enmity to so glorious a system of God's grace ; 
we hope you have the spirit of Christ, and wish well 
to mankind. We have besure, great consolation in be- 
lieving that our Redeemer has many faithful servants 
and loving disciples in the world, who do not believe 
in the extensiveness of salvation as we do, and we 
often take great satisfaction in feasts of charity, with 
such brethren. St. Peter was undoubtedly a lover of 
Christ and his gospel, before he was taught by the sea 
ofJopa to call no man common or unclean. The 
rest of the disciples, who were dissatisfied with his 
preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised, were 
doubtless possessed of the spirit of Christ, which caus- 
ed them to glorify God when they had more exten- 
sive views of the gospel, through Peter's communica- 
tions. As far as we see men walk in the spirit of love 
to God and one another, we feel an union with them, 
whether their particular sentiments are ours or not. 
Men cannot believe at will ; we believe as evidence ap- 
pears to our mind. The times have been, when each 
denomination has been proscribed, and, in some mea- 
sure, persecuted. Each as it rose has been censured by 



ON ATONEMENT. 



227 



those who could not fall in with their doctrine ; and 
what does all this condemning one another prove, only 
the imperfections of all, and the badness of the human 
heart ? You will not think evil of me, kind reader, if I 
exhort you not to feel too hard against what you may 
find to be your duty to acknowledge. It grieved Peter 
when his Lord asked him the third time, if he loved 
him, as he had denied him thrice. There are many 
universalists now who have frequent occasion to con- 
fess how hard they have been against the doctrine, and 
how much they have spoken unadvisedly with theif 
lips against what they now rejoice to believe is truth, 
and humbly adore the Saviour of sinners for opening 
their eyes to behold such unspeakable beauties. If 
you attend to the exhortation, to grow in grace, and 
in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, undoubt- 
edly you may see more of the riches of his goodness 
than you now do. The prophet EzekiePs knowledge 
of the holy waters was progressive, and obtained by de- 
grees : When he was first led into the waters, they 
were only to his ancles ; but he went still further, and 
they were to his knees ; he went still further, and they 
were to his loins ; he went further, and the waters 
were risen, waters for men to swim in, a river that no 
man could pass. Had the prophet refused to travel in 
these waters, after he first entered them, he would not 
have known nor believed them to be so multitudinous 
as they were. A soul, in the earliest moments of hea- 
venly love, is first unspeakably charmed with the un- 
told beauties and graces of his Redeemer ; next *vife, 
children, father, mother, brothers, sisters, all friends, 
directly enemies, and finally all mankind are embraced 
in the extended arms of heavenly love and divine be- 
nevolence. 

I close this work, humbly hoping and expecting the 
glorious increase and extensive growth of what I have 
(though feebly) contended for, viz. the holiness and 
happiness of mankind. I look, with strong expecta- 
tion, for that period, when all sin, and every degree of 
unreconciliation will be destroyed, by the divine power 
of that love which is stronger than death, which many 



TREATISE 



waters connot quench, nor the floods drown ; in which 
alone T put my trust, and in which my hope is anchor- 
ed foi all mankind ; earnestly praying, that the desire o 
the righteous may not be cut off. 

The fulness of times will come, and the times of the 
restitution of all things will be accomplished. Then shall 
truth be victorious, and all error flee to eternal night. 
Then shall universal songs of honor be sung to the praise 
of him who liveth forever and ever. All death, sorrow 
and crying, shall be done away ; pains and disorders shall 
be no more felt, temptations no more trouble the lovers 
of God, nor sin poison the human heart. The blessed 
hand of the once crucified shall wipe tears from off all 
faces. O, transporting thought ! Then shall the blessed 
Saviour see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied , 
when, through his mediation, universal nature shall be 
brought in perfect union with truth and holiness, and the 
spirit of God fill all rational beings. Then shall the 
law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, which maketh 
free from the law of sin, become the governing princi- 
ple of the whole man once made subject to vanity, 
once inthraled in darkness, sin and misery, but then, de- 
livered from the bondage of corruption, and restored 
to perfect reconciliation to God in the heavenly Adam. 
Then shall the great object of the Saviour's mission be 
accomplished. Then shall the question be asked, O 
death where is thy sting ? But death shall ?not be, to 
give the answer. And, O grave, where is thy victory? 
But the boaster shall be silent. The Son shall deliver 
up the kingdom to God the Father ; the eternal radi- 
ance shall smile, and God shall be all in all. 



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